Fishing the Mesopelagic Zone

The mesopelagic zone in the world’s oceans is a potentially significant food source to help meet the growing demand for protein and lipids. Recent estimates suggest that mesopelagic organizes could provide up to 10 billion metric tons of biomass, which is ten times larger than previous estimates and represents the largest untapped biomass on the planet. However, there are still significant knowledge gaps in understanding the ecology of the mesopelagic zone, particularly regarding the role of mesopelagic organisms within the marine ecosystem. This project looks at individual decision-making in the light of the risks and potential negative externalties resulting from exploiting the mesopelagic zone.