Steve Eayrs
Steve Eayrs is a Research Scientist (Gear Technology/Fish Behavior) at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, a non-profit marine science center located in Portland, Maine, USA. Steve works primarily with commercial fishermen and other researchers to reduce the negative impacts of fishing activity, including bycatch, seabed impact, fuel consumption, and green house gas emissions.
He also works to develop Environmental Management Systems - a systematic and holistic process of introducing best-practice to simultaneously improve environmental outcomes and vessel profitability – and conduct energy audits to improve the energy efficiency of fishing enterprises.
Prior to moving to the USA, Steve was a commercial shrimp fisherman in Australia, Saudi Arabia and Burma. He then spent 16 years as a Fishing Technologist at the Australian Maritime College, during which time he was extensively involved in several projects developing TEDs and BRDs and other gear modifications to reduce bycatch in Australia’s fish- and shrimp-trawl fisheries.
Steve also participated in a number of international efforts to reduce bycatch, including working with the FAO to present workshops and conduct at sea training for fishermen and researchers in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. He completed, A guide to bycatch reduction in tropical shrimp-trawl fisheries for the FAO which has now been translated into several languages, and has regularly been a technical assistant/advisor to the South East Asian Fisheries Development Centre (SEAFDEC) in Thailand.
Steve holds a B. App. Sc. (Fishing Technology) and a M. Phil (Fisheries), and is currently striving towards completion of a PhD (Natural Resources and Earth Systems Science) at the University of New Hampshire.
He also works to develop Environmental Management Systems - a systematic and holistic process of introducing best-practice to simultaneously improve environmental outcomes and vessel profitability – and conduct energy audits to improve the energy efficiency of fishing enterprises.
Prior to moving to the USA, Steve was a commercial shrimp fisherman in Australia, Saudi Arabia and Burma. He then spent 16 years as a Fishing Technologist at the Australian Maritime College, during which time he was extensively involved in several projects developing TEDs and BRDs and other gear modifications to reduce bycatch in Australia’s fish- and shrimp-trawl fisheries.
Steve also participated in a number of international efforts to reduce bycatch, including working with the FAO to present workshops and conduct at sea training for fishermen and researchers in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. He completed, A guide to bycatch reduction in tropical shrimp-trawl fisheries for the FAO which has now been translated into several languages, and has regularly been a technical assistant/advisor to the South East Asian Fisheries Development Centre (SEAFDEC) in Thailand.
Steve holds a B. App. Sc. (Fishing Technology) and a M. Phil (Fisheries), and is currently striving towards completion of a PhD (Natural Resources and Earth Systems Science) at the University of New Hampshire.
Steve Eayrs