ANA-MPA — More than 300 kilos of ‘ghost nets’ – the deadly lost or forgotten fishing nets left behind by fishermen to litter the seabed – were recovered from the sea in Tolos, Argolida by Medasset, an organisation for the protection of the marine environment. Working with the volunteer diving group Innerspace Explorers Greece, who spent 1.5 hours underwater to scour the Tolos harbour on Sunday, Medasset intends to recycle the nylon twine from the recovered nets to make other nylon-fibre goods, such as socks, swimwear, carpets and other items of everyday use, as part of the European initiative “Healthy Seas: A journey from waste to wear”.
The divers recovered derelict nets from three spots in picturesque Tolos on Sunday, at depths of 10 to 25 metres, while they were able to release trapped fish and also locate other nets that will be recovered during forthcoming missions.
The recovered nets will first be taken to Alimos marina, where the Alimos Professional Fishers Association is based, and from there to a Healthy Seas recycling unit in Slovenia and another in Izmir.
Talking to the ANA-MPA, the head of Medasset Vassilis Stamogiannis outlined the serious impact of derelict fishing gear and ‘ghost nets’ on marine flora and fauna, pointing out that they never stop “fishing” and pointlessly killing many kinds of animals, as well as having a negative impact on marine ecosystems.
“Since they are made of nylon, they never degrade but remain on the seabed, polluting it irrevocably. It is a very widespread phenomenon in Greek seas but also more generally in the Mediterranean,” he said.
Stamogiannis said that the initiative was warmly and enthusiastically received by the fishing community, with similar operations planned in Mikrolimano, Piraeus, Perama, Alimos and the island of Corfu.
