'Smart buoys' help track fishing gear so it doesn't get lost

Lost fishing gear — be it nets, lines or pots — continues “ghost fishing” forever, causing a slow death to countless marine creatures and financial losses to fishermen.

Now, new “smart buoys” can track and monitor all types of deployed gear and report its location directly to a cell phone or website.

Blue Ocean Gear, of California, created and builds the buoys that also can track ocean temperatures, depth, movement, even how much has been caught. The small, three-pound buoys are just seven inches in diameter, don’t require any special training to use, and are tough enough to handle the harshes...