" In many fisheries around the world, lack of disposal options means old fishing gear finds its way back into the marine environment, where it haunts our oceans as “ghost gear” with devastating impacts. Some 640,000 metric tons (705,000 tons) of fishing gear are lost or discarded in the ocean every year, and each year this gear captures and kills, among other things, an estimated 136,000 seals, sea lions and whales. Since ghost gear accumulates around active fisheries, it can also pose an economic hardship to fishermen as it kills fish or other seafood they would otherwise harvest.
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Fishing gear recycling is still in its infancy. Only two companies, Italian yarn producer Aquafil and Danish cleantech company Plastix, have the technology and resources to do it on a large scale. Both were created in response to the ghost gear problem, and both are now expanding to serve harbors in Europe and around the world.
Steveston Harbour began sending its nylon nets to Aquafil’s recycling plant in Ljubljana, Slovenia, in 2014. Aquafil covers shipping costs and pays Steveston Harbour a small sum for the nets. Once in Slovenia, the nets are processed into yarn that can then be made into products like socks and carpet tiles."
https://ensia.com/features/fishing-gear-recycling/
...
Fishing gear recycling is still in its infancy. Only two companies, Italian yarn producer Aquafil and Danish cleantech company Plastix, have the technology and resources to do it on a large scale. Both were created in response to the ghost gear problem, and both are now expanding to serve harbors in Europe and around the world.
Steveston Harbour began sending its nylon nets to Aquafil’s recycling plant in Ljubljana, Slovenia, in 2014. Aquafil covers shipping costs and pays Steveston Harbour a small sum for the nets. Once in Slovenia, the nets are processed into yarn that can then be made into products like socks and carpet tiles."
https://ensia.com/features/fishing-gear-recycling/