Marine Scotland are collecting information to inform the design of a recycling scheme for fishing gear.
In addition, a better understanding of the scale of quantity of material that requires disposal will be invaluable when it comes to implementation of European Directives relating to waste management in the future.
A Marine Waste Researcher is currently working on a project within Marine Scotland to collect information about fishing gear which will then be used to help design a recycling scheme. They have visited many ports around Scotland, and with the help of harbour masters and local businesses, have been able to record information about the quantity of gear in use, in storage and on order. There has been considerable support for this project following the British-Irish Council Marine Litter Symposium, and to complete the information gathering the help of fishers is now needed.
Designing a recycling scheme requires a thorough understanding of how fishers deal with their nets when they reach the end of their useful life. It would be greatly appreciated if any fishers could spare the time to complete this survey, it shouldn’t take too long, and your answers are very important to the success of any future recycling scheme. The survey closes Wednesday 12 February.
You can access the survey with this link
https://response.questback.com/scottishgovernment/t3tkis52la