‘ANINI — A 25-foot Matson container was filled to the brim last week with nearly five tons of discarded, smelly fish nets. Due to the ongoing efforts of several good Samaritans and many nonprofit organizations, such as Surfrider Kaua‘i, the
‘ANINI — A 25-foot Matson container was filled to the brim last week with nearly five tons of discarded, smelly fish nets.
Due to the ongoing efforts of several good Samaritans and many nonprofit organizations, such as Surfrider Kaua‘i, the accumulated debris will no longer pose a threat to marine life, nor will it continue to disgrace the island’s pristine surroundings.
The nets were shipped to O‘ahu to help generate electricity at HPower — Hawai‘i’s only waste-to-energy power plant — but first, they will be cut down into smaller pieces with the assistance of Schnitzer Steel Hawai‘i in Kapolei.
Net Patrol, a campaign coordinated by Surfrider volunteer Barbara Wiedner, has scoured the island for nets either washed ashore Kaua‘i’s beaches or ensnared in its reefs, then removes the fishing debris with the help of several volunteers.
“Just a couple people can make a difference,” said Wiedner. “After two years of collecting these nets, it was great to get them off island and over to HPower on O‘ahu for them to use and truly recycle.”
Scott Bacon of Malama Na‘Apapa — a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the island’s coral reef ecosystems — had stored the tangled, soggy nets at his house for the past two years after meeting Wiedner at a “Save Your Seas” conference.
“The nets were sitting there waiting to go out for almost two years and it felt really good to finally send them off,” he said. “It was hard work and it was exciting seeing something happen.”
There are many organizations on the island continuously volunteering their time to help remove debris from Kaua‘i’s beaches, said Wiedner.
“The nets came from many different environmental groups on the island and we all worked together and we would like to continue the collaboration,” she said.
Wiedner added that visitors to the island have also been integral in helping clean up Kaua‘i’s beaches.
“Many visitors have been involved with the project. They see us working and come out and help; people from all over the world,” she said.
Sheri Saari, a volunteer for Surfrider Kaua‘i, believes keeping the island’s beaches clean is vital to sustaining a healthy marine ecosystem.
“These nets are a big deal,” she said. “Not only are they aesthetically not pleasing to the eye, they also impose tremendous dangers to our marine mammals and sea birds.”
She also mentions that the nets have a tendency to block sunlight from reefs and can inhibit the natural process of photosynthesis from taking place.
Most nets are thought to be washing ashore from commercial fisheries around the world and, according to Saari, have a tendency to gravitate toward Kaua‘i’s east-facing shores.
“We want to encourage folks to be on their own net patrols at their own local beaches, especially this time of year,” she said, as the winter months tend to be high season for discarded nets.
On April 18, in celebration of Earth Day, Surfrider Kaua‘i will be hosting a beach clean-up at Nawiliwili Harbor in collaboration with Nawiliwili Yacht Club, Department of Aquatic Resources, U.S. Coastguard and the Sierra Club.
For more information or to report discarded nets found on any beach or reef, call Wiedner at 635-2593 or Karen Tilley at 821-8008.
