Overfishing is a global problem which is difficult to control. Illegal fishing abounds out in the sea because it’s hard to trace these activities in the middle of the ocean. Efforts are now being made to check the menace.

Ocean conversation organization Oceana are joining hands to monitor fishing activities with the help of Google Earth. The partnership has resulted in the formation of Global Fishing Watch, an initiative is aimed at tracking down fishing fleets in real time which can be accessed on its web platform.

The initiative gives users real time access to global fishing fleet so as to keep a check on nearby fishers. Besides the common internet user, seafood suppliers, and researchers, media outlets could all keep an eye on global fishing activities in the ocean.

The tracking down is achieved by the collection of satellite data using Automatic Identification System (AIS), which reveals the real time motion of vessels in the ocean. These vessels are automatically classified as fishing or non-fishing on the basis of their movement patterns.

The efforts are aimed at exposing illegal fishing activities. United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization reveals that around one-third of the global marine fish stock are overexploited due to activities like unregulated fishing, off-season fishing, illegal fishing in protected waters, etc.