Ghost Gear Fund

On this page

• Program overview
• Purpose of the GhostGear Fund
• Program pillars
• Eligibility
• Timelines
• How to apply

Program overview

The Ghost Gear Fund is a federally funded program led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, intended to support Canada’s commitment to preventing and mitigating the risk of ghost fishing and encouraging the development of sustainable fishing practices, particularly as it applies to abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) domestically and abroad. This work is being carried out as part of the Government of Canada’s broader commitments to support national and international efforts to reduce plastics in our oceans and the use of plastics in government operations, and to reduce the occurrence and effects of ghost gear around the world.

To date, the Ghost Gear Fund has funded 49 projects, for a total of $16.7 million. Forty-five (45) of these projects were located in Canada and four (4) were international.

Purpose of the Ghost Gear Fund

The purpose of the Ghost Gear Fund is to encourage the sustainable management of Canada’s fisheries, Indigenous fisheries programs, aquaculture activities, and support commercial fishing harbours to take concrete actions to support ALDFG prevention, retrieval and responsible disposal. The Ghost Gear Fund will also support fish harvesters to acquire new gear technologies to reduce the occurrence of gear loss.

Program pillars

Approved projects will be funded based on activities under the following four pillars:

• Abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) retrieval*;
• Responsible disposal;
• Acquisition and piloting of currently available innovative technologies; and
• International leadership

*ALDFG retrieval programs are required to take place outside of active fishing seasons.

Eligibility

Eligible recipients must fall under one of the following categories where they contribute to research, development, management, conservation, harvesting, protection or promotion of fisheries and oceans resources:

• Not-for-profit and charitable organizations, Canadian or International;
• Companies, businesses, organizations, associations, Canadian or International;
• Indigenous organizations/communities**;
• Recognized research, academic, and educational institutions;
• Other levels of government and their agencies or Crown corporations; and
• Canadian individuals.

**for more details see the Application Guidelines

Timelines

Recipients selected for funding must complete their project by March 31, 2023.

How to apply

Applications must be submitted using the application form and must meet all of the program’s requirements to be considered for funding. Submit applications by email to DFO.GGFund-Fonddesef.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca. 

For more details on how proposals will be evaluated, please refer to the Application Guidelines.