Norwegian company, Nofir, has collected 24 tonnes of old fishing equipment from Antarctica, in a bid to rid the world’s oceans of lost and discarded gear.
Abandoned fishing gear is a big environmental problems with around 64,000 tonnes estimated as lost at sea each year. According to a report produced by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation the world’s oceans may have more plastic debris than fish by the year 2050.
Nofir has found a part solution to this problem by collecting discarded gear for recycling at its plant in Norway. After proper treatment by yarn producer, Aquafil, old fishing nets can be turned into Econyl yarn which is then used to create new products for the fashion, furnishings and automotive industry.
Thousands of socks
According to Aquafil’s research a single tonne of nylon nets can produce around 26,000 pairs of socks or 1,000 square metres of carpet.
Nofir’s chief executive, Øistein Aleksandersen, said the company was proud to have collected waste from such a distant area. “Turning waste into raw material is not only good resource management, but in cases such as this one, also a great win for the environment as the discarded equipment will not end up in the ocean,” he added.
Since 2011 Nofir has collected more than 33,740 tonnes of equipment from 15 countries, helping to reduce 121,500 CO2 equivalents in the atmosphere and saving 50,600 tonnes of oil equivalents.
