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BackgroundThe insecticide-treated mosquito net (ITN) is a crucial component of malaria control programs, and has prevented many malaria cases and deaths due to scale up. ITNs also serve effectively as fishing nets and various sources have reported use of ITNs for fishing. This article examines how widespread the practice of mosquito net fishing with ITNs is.MethodsWe conducted in-depth interviews with fishery personnel and traditional leadership from the Barotse Royal Establishment in Western Province, Zambia, to better understand the presence or absence of the use of ITNs as fishing nets. We then coded the interviews for themes through content analysis. Additionally we conducted a desk review of survey data to show trends in malaria indicators, nutritional status of the population and fish consumption.ResultsAll those interviewed reported that ITNs are regularly used for fishing in Western Zambia and the misuse is widespread. Concurrently those interviewed reported declines in fish catches both in terms of quantity and quality leading to threatened food security in the area. In addition to unsustainable fishing practices those interviewed referenced drought and population pressure as reasons for fishery decline. Malaria indicators do not show a trend in declining malaria transmission, fish consumption has dropped dramatically and nutritional status has not improved over time.ConclusionsDespite the misuse of the ITNs for fishing all those interviewed maintained that ITN distribution should continue. Donors, control programs and scientists should realize that misuse of ITNs as fishing nets is a current problem for malaria control and potentially for food security that needs to be addressed.

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The 12-Mile Dump Site Recovery Study (12MDSRS) was a multi-year, multi-disciplinary field study to monitor the recovery of the benthic ecosystem in the inner New York (NY) Bight following termination of sewage sludge disposal in 1987. Sewage sludge had been dumped at the 12-Mile Dump Site (12MDS) for over 60 yr. In the early 1980s, the 12MDS was receiving the largest volume of sewage sludge of any dump site in the world. Monthly sampling of sediments, benthic macrofauna, and other parameters was conducted for 18 mo during phased cessation of sludge disposal and 21 mo afterward at 3 sites considered to have varying degrees of sludge influence. We used a Before-AfterControl-Impact (BACI) design in an attempt to factor out effects of background variability from the effect of termination of sludge disposal. The BACI analyses confirmed a sludge cessation effect for only some of the taxa that showed large increases in abundance after cessation. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (MDS) ordination indicated a shift in community structure at the most contaminated site towards that at the reference sites within 21 mo post cessation. Differences observed between the Pearson & Rosenberg model and the present study appear to be related to site-specific factors in the inner NY Bight. These factors facilitated the rapid reduction of sewage sludge constituents in surficial sediments after cessation.

During a research cruise to Georges Bank in 1999 to study the areas closed to fishing, broad areas of the sea floor (3000_km2) were found to have a high percentage cover of emergent invertebrate tubes. Most of these tubes were attributable to the tubicolous epifaunal amphipod, Ericthonius rubricornis. Our data show the spatial extent that dense clumps of amphipod tubes could cover the sea floor on Georges Bank. When some of the same sites were sampled 1_yr later, in June 2000, the percent cover of the tube clumps on the sea floor was significantly reduced. Biogenic structures, such as invertebrate tubes, are important features of benthic habitats and may provide protection for juvenile fish and invertebrate resource species. Our observations reiterate that biogenic habitat characteristics are not spatially and temporally stable and this needs to be recognized by fisheries managers when managing the living marine resources that utilize these habitats.

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