Repescaplas
The initiative aimed at mitigating the impact of marine litter, particularly plastic waste, through its recovery, characterisation, and valorisation into useful products.
During the project, 46 volunteer fishermen participated along with 32 vessels operating across 4 different ports. Initial collection expectations were exceeded and demonstrated a strong commitment from fishermen to reduce plastic pollution in marine ecosystems.
During fishing operations, plastic waste coming in the fishing gear is stored in big bags at the vessels and afterwards deposited at the port, where it is weighed, labeled, and temporarily stored. The waste is then classified by type, and samples are taken for laboratory analysis.
The samples, primarily composed of polyethylene, PET, and polyamides, undergo optical separation and are subjected to pyrolysis. This process produces a solid fraction for activated carbon and a liquid fraction that can be valorised as fuel. Finally, the recycled materials are incorporated into new products or used as an energy source.
Type of waste : Waste Incidentially Fished (WIF)
Quantity of waste : First year: > 3 tons and nearly 8,000 items. Second year: 5 tons
Infos
Location(s): Spain
Duration: 2018 – 2021
Funding: Biodiversity Foundation, through the Pleamar Program, co-financed by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF)
Contact : info@vertidoscero.com
Results
Three demonstrators have been developed using this recycling system. A composter has been manufactured from low-density polyethylene (LDPE), incorporating 50% recycled material and marine litter. With PET, various merchandising items - such as trash bins, clipboards, and planters - have been produced to promote the project, utilizing both recycled material and marine waste. Additionally, through chemical recycling by pyrolysis of the mixed waste fraction, a fuel has been obtained that can be used by the vessels themselves.
Initiatives to discover
initiative(s)
FILIPECH
The FILIPECH project has taken two main actions: the establishment of the producer responsability organisation dedicated to the management of end-of-life fishing gear, and the carrying out of new experiments in four ports to test and improve the collection and recovery of used HDPE trawls
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Gravity Wave
Gravity Wave is a social start-up based in Spain. committed to combating marine pollution through a circular economy model.
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IFF Plastics
IFF Plastics in Co. Clare, Ireland worked together with BIM to investigate if retired fishing nets from ports could be recycled into a material to create products such as fence posts.
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Oyster Bag Waste Management
Studies and trials have been carried out on managing waste aquaculture gear, determining the feasibility of disposal of end of life gear through recycling and other systems in comparison to other disposal strategies such as landfill.
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