REMOTE ELECTRONIC MONITORING EQUIPMENT SUCCESSFULLY INSTALLED ON-BOARD THE JOHN MELLISS
The installation of the Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) equipment aboard the fishing vessel John Melliss is now complete (see photos attached). Fisheries Development Manager from the Future Fisheries Team in the UK Marine Management Organisation, Martin Arris, worked with local Electrical Engineer, Carlos Yon, to install the cameras and other equipment aboard the vessel.
The system is entirely separate from the vessel electronics and is powered by a solar panel situated on the wheelhouse roof. This will allow the vessel to spend long periods drifting without the system draining the vessel batteries.
The two-camera system provides an overview of the fishing area and a high quality view of the engine cover. Fish will be placed on the engine cover prior to them being put into the fish hold. This will allow the system to identify the species and size of any fish being retained.
The monitoring equipment also includes a GPS receiver and a weather station and will gather the following information:
GPS coordinates for fishing events
Apparent wind speed and angle
Theoretical wind speed and direction
Air temperature
Wind chill temperature
Barometric pressure
3D magnetic compass heading
Heading relative to true North
Rate of turn
Angle of pitch and roll
Rate of pitch and roll.
The equipment and installation has been made possible through Blue Belt Programme funding and will be trialled over the coming months to see how it can help the Environment, Natural Resources & Planning Portfolio monitor fishing operations, and help St Helena meet its international obligations as a member of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).
#StHelena #JohnMelliss #Fishing #BlueBelt #ICCAT
