One of the biggest problems in the commercial fishing industry is that of overfishing. The oceans are being drained of fish – and certain species are becoming endangered – all in pursuit of money. This issue has led to the creation of numerous “no fishing” zones around the world, but those rules are frequently broken by poachers.

According to a recent article from The Atlantic, though, there is now a new piece of technology out there that could help to curb both of these problems. Global Fishing Watch is a program developed by a pair of non-profit organizations – SkyTruth and Oceana – and backed by Google. The technology essentially makes it possible to keep an eye on fishing boats from above and determine whether or not those vessels are participating in suspicious fishing activity.

SkyTruth has already had a moment in the spotlight. The company, which uses satellite pictures to essentially form a living, breathing map of the globe, was in the news back around the time of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig leak back in 2010. Thanks to images obtained and released by SkyTruth, we were able to understand the true extent of the oil spill, which was considerably larger than BP wanted to admit.

Global Fishing Watch will make use of similar “bird’s eye view” images, only with a different goal in mind: catching dishonest commercial fishermen. By March of 2015, anyone will be able to access the Global Fishing Watch system online, zoom in on specific regions (like “no fishing” zones, for instance), and keep tabs on what certain vessels are doing.

The hope is that Global Fishing Watch will be able to help authorities in apprehending poachers, cut down on overfishing around the globe, and improve the overall health of marine life around the world. The Atlantic article, though, raises a few good points about just how much the system will be able to help with those problems. Will images obtained through the Global Fishing Watch be admissible in court? Or will it be difficult to prove, beyond reasonable doubt, which ships are violating laws?

These questions will likely continue to swirl around in the coming months, and SkyTruth and Oceana will likely continue to search for the answers and solutions before Global Fishing Watch officially goes live.