Fishing for Litter South West makes a vital contribution to protection of marine mammals by providing vessels with large durable bags to collect marine litter which are then deposited on the quayside for the harbour authorities to secure in dedicated Fishing for Litter skips and bins.
Launched in Newlyn in 2009 the project has gone from strength to strength and now counts Brixham, Plymouth, Newquay, Looe, St Ives, Mevagissey, Hayle and Padstow amongst participating ports. Almost 70 tonnes of marine litter has been collected as part of the project so far with this amount set to rise as funding from The Crown Estate and other organisations helps more ports and vessels join the effort.
The Crown Estate’s, Gary Thompson, said: “It has been really encouraging to watch Fishing for Litter South West grow from its launch in 2009. Although a voluntary project more and more vessels and ports are eager to sign up and contribute to the protection of our marine environment.
“The Crown Estate is committed to supporting projects which help reduce marine litter and we are extremely pleased to announce today that we will be supporting the fishermen of the south west for at least another 3 years”.
Alison Elvey de Rios, South West Fishing for Litter Coordinator, commented: “It’s great news that The Crown Estate has committed to continuing such an important project for the marine environment. The project has grown from strength to strength over the last three years, and the Crown Estate funding will help us build on its success, not only by helping to collect at least another 100 tonnes of litter, but also to increase education activity for children and the general public about the project and the impacts of marine litter.”
