Working Group on Fisheries Acoustics, Science and Technology

http://www.ices.dk/community/groups/Pages/WGFAST.aspx

Contents

This repository hosts code and documents associated with the FAST working group.

It also previously contained the source documents for two conventions developed by WGFAST, but which now reside in their own repositories:

• AcMeta: A metadata convention for processed acoustic data from active acoustic systems
• SONAR-netCDF4: The SONAR-netCDF4 convention for sonar data

This repository also contains a directory of help files on how to contribute to both conventions.

Overview

ICES Working Group on Fisheries Acoustics, Science and Technology (WGFAST) focuses on the development and application of science and technology used to observe the marine environment (i.e. acoustic and other sensors).

WGFAST holds state-of-the-art expertise in advanced acoustic-trawl survey techniques, and employs these techniques on a wide range of platforms including research vessels, ships of opportunity, and observatories.

The working group was created in 1984 following a recommendation from the ICES Fish Capture Committee in 1982. It has been a key group internationally in developing acoustic trawl surveys, and throughout its lifetime the focus has shifted from solving the technical challenges of reliable acoustic measurements to the use of acoustics to observe key biological parameters such as biomass indices, behavioural metrics, and acoustic species classification. The group has recently expanded its core activities to include the use of acoustics to study marine ecosystems on a wide range of observation platforms.

At approximately 5-7 year intervals, WGFAST organizes a symposium to facilitate information exchange among fisheries acousticians, physicists, engineers, biologists, and ecologists. Eight previous symposia have been held:

• 1973 and 1982 Bergen, Norway
• 1987 Seattle, USA
• 1995 Aberdeen, Scotland
• 2002 Montpellier, France
• 2008 Bergen, Norway
• 2015 Nantes, France
• 2023 Portland, Maine, USA

The published proceedings from these conferences reflect the historical development from acoustic-trawl surveys to addressing broader interests in applied aquatic observation systems.

In addition to these symposia, WGFAST has met yearly since 1984:

Year	Dates	Location	Note	Chair	No. attendees	Symposium attendees	Source
2024	9-12 April	Brest, France	Online and physical, 85 in person, 115 registrations	Anne Lebourges-Dhaussy	85
2023	31 March	Portland, Maine, USA	Symposium 27-30 March	Anne Lebourges-Dhaussy	47	150
2022	25-28 April	Somone, Senegal	Online and physical, 16 in person, 114 online	Michael Jech	130
2021	19-23 April	Bergen, Norway	Joint session on 21 April, online	Michael Jech	156
2020	22-Apr	Bergen, Norway	Online	Michael Jech	120
2019	29 April-2 May	Galway, Ireland		Richard O'Driscoll	93
2018	20-23 March	Seattle, USA		Richard O'Driscoll	91
2017	4-7 April	Nelson, New Zealand	Joint session 3 April	Richard O'Driscoll	63
2016	19-22 April	Vigo, Spain		Verena Trenkel	67
2015	29-May	Nantes, France	Symposium 25-28 May	Verena Trenkel	43	214
2014	6-9 May	New Bedford, USA	Joint session??	Verena Trenkel	66
2013	16-19 April	San Sebastian, Spain		Nils Olav Handegard	75
2012	24-27 April	Brest, France		Nils Olav Handegard	69
2011	10-13 April	Reykjavik, Iceland	Joint session 9 April	Nils Olav Handegard	68
2010	27-30 April	San Diego, USA		Rudy Kloser	68
2009	19-22 May	Ancona, Italy		Rudy Kloser	62
2008	23-Jun	Bergen, Norway	Symposium 16-20 June	Rudy Kloser	40	322
2007	23-27 April	Dublin, Ireland	Joint session 23 April	Rudy Kloser	73
2006	27-30 March	Hobart, Australia		David Demer	71
2005	19-22 April	Rome, Italy	Joint session	David Demer	83
2004	20-23 April	Gdynia, Poland	Joint session 22 April	David Demer	71
2003	18-21 June	Bergen, Norway		Yvan Simard	75
2002	17-Jun	Montpellier, France	Symposium 10-14 June	Yvan Simard	51	303
2001	24-27 April	Seattle, USA		Yvan Simard	61
2000	10-14 April	IJmuiden/Harlem, The Netherlands	Joint session 12 April	François Gerlotto	41
1999	20-22 April	St John's, Canada	Joint session 23 April	François Gerlotto	43		CM 1999/B:2
1998	21-23 April	La Coruña, Spain		François Gerlotto	36
1997	18-19 April	Hamburg, Germany		François Gerlotto	42
1996	17-19 April	Woods Hole, USA		John Simmonds	36
1995	17-Jun	Aberdeen, Scotland	Symposium 12-16 June	John Simmonds	n/a	267	CM 1995/B:5. No author list in report
1994	28-29 April	Montpellier, France		John Simmonds	54
1993	21-22 April	Gothenburg, Sweden		John Simmonds	n/a		CM 1993/B:3. No author list in report
1992	17-18 June	Bergen, Norway		Jim Traynor	n/a		CM 1992/B:5. No author list in report
1991	24-27 April	Ancona, Italy	Joint session 25 April	Jim Traynor	n/a		CM 1991/B:29. Author list missing in report
1990	26-27 April	Rostock, Germany	Joint session 25 April	Jim Traynor	49
1989	27-28 April	Dublin, Ireland		Jim Traynor	46
1988	20-22 April	Ostend, Belgium	Joint session 20 April	Kjell Olsen	33
1987	26-28 June	Seattle, USA	Symposium	Kjell Olsen	28	250	Symposium number is participants and senior authors
1986	14-16 May	Hull, UK		Kjell Olsen	32
1985	22-24 May	Tromsø, Norway	Joint session	Kjell Olsen	37
1984	2-4 May	Hirtshals, Denmark	First meeting	Kjell Olsen	24		CM 1984/B:41