Police in the UAE emirate of Sharjah warned fishermen Tuesday against using illegal nets, saying it constituted a major violation of environmental rules leading to the death of large numbers of fish and other marine animals, Khaleej Times reported Wednesday.
Major Hamad Mattar, in charge of marine rescue at Sharjah police, was quoted by the daily as saying that a policeman had alerted the force about a large number of dead fish floating in the sea.
Investigations showed that a 120-meter-long fishing net, made of plastic and locally called “Leikh”, was left in the waters, the paper reported, quoting Hamad as saying "the net was kept for a very long time and large and small fish were trapped in it.”
Police told the paper that violators of the law faced imprisonment for a minimum period of three months and/or a fine of between Dh25,000 and Dh50,000, noting a repetition of the violation would land a violator in prison for a minimum period of one year and/or a fine of between Dh50,000 and Dh100,000 - Albawaba.com
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