Fisheries discards have not been defined in a generally accepted form. The specialized literature reports their significant ecologic and economic impact. Their monitoring, control and minimisation have been recommended by several international bodies. Within CCAMLR different conservation measures deal with the problem following different approaches. A proposal to establish limits on the amount of discards in CCAMLR fisheries is presented and the need to define the terms related with the observation and monitoring of discards is highlighted.