The commercial fishing industry inflicts several deleterious impacts upon oceanic environments, including pollution from discarded gear and population declines in incidentally caught species. Yet, there has been little investigation into fishers’ attitudes towards such issues, and their willingness to implement mitigative measures. Our study investigates UK and Ireland fishers’ perceptions of gear pollution and bycatch, and their willingness to implement PEFBs, using a survey and interviews. Significant positive associations were identified between (a) fishers’ environmental awareness and concern, (b) level of concern and use of PEFBs, and (c) personal experiences with degradation and level of awareness and concern. Sociodemographics, however, were not deemed influential, conflicting with numerous studies. Fishers typically showed greater concern and willingness to mitigate gear pollution than bycatch, although socio-economic concerns seemed to take precedence overall. The findings have several implications for conservation efforts, highlighting means for overcoming barriers in engaging with PEFBs and suggestions for improving environmental communication programmes. Due to study scope limitations, further investigations are needed to explore the role of factors such as political standing in greater detail. The study provides a foundation for understanding fishers’ environmental attitudes and behaviours and could be pivotal in strengthening sustainable fishery management.