Ørsted has established a long-term action plan to tackle marine litter with the help of the UK fishing industry
The Fishing for Litter project run by KIMO UK at ports in Grimsby, Cromer, Kings Lynn, East-Runton and Boston, works with the fishing industry to reduce the amount of rubbish in the sea and washing up on the beaches.
“Over the past couple of years, we’ve been engaging directly with fishers and fishing organisations to make sure that we can facilitate an effective and functional solution which works for them,” said Lara Leonard, commercial fisheries manager at Ørsted.
“Our main focus is to aid and empower fishers to make a difference, while also building on the positive relations with the fishing community who work within or near to our wind farm sites.”
Simple but effective
Participating fishing vessels are given hardwearing bags to collect marine litter that is passively caught during fishing activities. Full bags of litter can then be taken ashore for disposal in dedicated skips.
The project provides the bags, skips, and covers the waste disposal costs. Participating fishers and any harbour staff who support the initiative, help to facilitate the disposal of marine litter and volunteer their time.
The idea for the project came about when Ørsted’s fisheries stakeholder team circulated a survey to the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisation (NFFO) and Holderness Fishing Industry Group (HFIG). Results indicated that the provision of bins and skips at local ports would be the preferred solution to tackling the problem of marine litter.
Ørsted’s Hornsea 3 offshore windfarm has committed to funding Fishing for Litter disposal facilities at up to six ports along the east of England for the approximately 30-year life of the project.
The company is also working to set up disposal facilities along the west coast of England and north into Yorkshire and is investigating potential options for the recycling of the marine litter collected.
