| Sumario: | We analyzed seabed litter densities in the NAFO Regulatory Area (NRA; Divs. 3LMNO) using six years of demersal trawling data from the EU-Spain/Portugal groundfish surveys (period 2018–2023). This study provides a preliminary updated information and a baseline information on seabed litter for Div. 3L and Divs. 3MNO, respectively. A total of 1936 valid bottom trawl hauls were analysed (40- 1481 m depth). Litter was found in 16.7% of the valid hauls, with mean densities of 6.7±18.5 items km–2 and 7.7±121.5 kg km-2. Fisheries was found to be the main source of seabed litter, and 41.8% of the hauls with litter presence showed litter included in the fisheries-related litter group category. Whereas in most cases the fisheries-related litter was composed of small fragments of rope, in other cases it was composed of entire fishing gears (e.g., pots from fisheries not managed by NAFO). Plastic, metal and other anthropogenic litter were the next most abundant group categories, accounting for 63.6%, 12.9% and 8.3% of the total seabed litter items recorded, respectively. The results from this study will provide information on the distribution of seabed litter in Divs. 3LMNO and will help to improve the current protocol for collecting seabed litter data and to implement best practices in groundfish surveys conducted in the region.
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