The way we think about our ocean is changing. Thanks to powerful documentaries in recent years, such as Blue Planet II and A Plastic Ocean, we now know that human actions are negatively affecting our waters - and we’ve seen some powerful responses in the wake of this information. Plastic drinking straws are now a faux pas, reusable bottles have become a new accessory, and polluting companies are feeling the pressure to clean up their act.

People power works, but unless this is channelled into the right avenues are we simply trying to mop up a constant flow of plastic?

Well, when you consider that straws account for just 0.025% of the 8 million tonnes of plastic entering our ocean each year, the answer is undoubtedly yes. So, where is the rest of the plastic coming from? And can we turn our attention to it to make a bigger impact?

The plastic that’s haunting our ocean

Plastic pollution is one of the largest threats to our ocean and to tackle it, we need to work smarter, not harder. To do this, we must look at the research and statistics to determine which plastics are doing the most harm.

Researchers investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch found that almost half of it is made up of fishing gear (46%). 

It’s estimated that of all ocean plastic worldwide, 10% of it is fishing gear - a staggering amount more than plastic straws. 

Facts like these are hugely important. If people power can reduce the 0.025% of plastic straws entering the ocean, imagine how impactful that could be if we went after the 10%. 

The problem with ghost fishing gear

Whether a fishing net is attached to a boat or not, it continues to do what it is designed to do - trap, catch, and kill marine life. This process is known as ‘ghost fishing’, and it’s one of the deadliest forms of plastic pollution.

When ghost nets move with the currents in the ocean, they trap whatever life gets in their way. As smaller fish become tangled, they attract bigger fish, and a killing cycle ensues.

Some of this fishing gear may make it to the beach, where it could continue to cause harm to land animals and sea birds. Or, it may sink to the ocean floor where it runs the risk of destroying precious habitat like coral. Eventually, the plastic net will break down into microplastics - a toxic tablet of chemicals that continues to harm marine wildlife as it moves through the food chain. When microplastics are ingested by microorganisms and smaller fish, these fish are then eaten by larger fish and with each stage of the food chain, the toxicity builds.

How does it get there?

In commercial fishing practices, when a net becomes caught on something underwater, it is common practice to cut and discard it into the ocean. Nets can also accidentally fall into the water. 

This happens so often that an estimated 640,000 tonnes of ghost fishing gear is lost in the oceans every year.

What can you do?

There have been calls for the tagging of all commercial fishing gear so that it becomes the responsibility of the fishing company to properly dispose of the nets. However, if those nets are ‘lost’ they will continue to trap and kill marine life before they are found and properly discarded. What’s more, this tagging is currently not mandatory and so with this deadly pollution still circulating, we can’t wait for someone else to put a stop to the problem of ghost fishing gear.

Though action on an industry or government level is needed, individuals hold a lot of power. One of the most effective things you can do is leave fish and seafood off your plate. This simple step may seem small, but when you look at the rise of vegan food in just the last few years, you see the influence of supply and demand. Where you spend your money matters, and our choices can either contribute to, or counteract, the problem. The same can also be said for single-use plastics. Buying loose fruit and veg or better yet, using local refill stores, reduces your personal plastic use. That, multiplied by millions of people, makes a real impact.

You can also beach clean - an empowering way to take direct action against plastic pollution. In fact, this is what inspired us to start North Sea Rejects. Through regular beach cleans, our eyes were opened to the sheer amount of ghost fishing gear we found along our local coastline. With a bit of research, we found out that this material is incredibly hard to recycle, particularly in the UK. And so, we created our circular economy business, donating 75% to conservation to turn ghost fishing gear into something that helps animals, instead of harming them.

We remove ghost gear to try and make our coastal waters safer for the amazing marine animals but also because we know the ocean is key in helping to tackle the climate crisis. It helps control our weather, acts as a carbon sink, and provides us with over 50% of the oxygen we breathe.

We need the ocean. We always have. But right now, the ocean needs us. And it needs us to take action and do the right thing.