Jyoti Verma
Hyundai Motor (Europe) celebrates World Oceans Day by announcing the results of the first major clean-up operation in 2022, which took place with its partners Ghost Diving and Healthy Seas in the Greek island of Ithaca.
The marine conservation organisations, along with local fishermen, have removed more than 25 tonnes of debris from the seabed. In the last two weeks, divers have removed some 25 abandoned or lost fishing nets from the sea.
Healthy Seas in a press release said the collected waste material would be recycled into yarn for making socks, swimwear, activewear and carpets. It also noted that most of the waste was left behind by a fish farm that shut down.
The press release also said that 6,40,000 tonne fishing gear is lost or abandoned every year in the seas and oceans. “The phenomenon takes the name ‘ghost fishing’ because the nets appear almost invisible underwater trapping and killing all manner of marine animals,” the press release said.
This year’s event cleaned 14 locations all around the island from March until June. It consisted of 45 participants, 15 divers and 10 organisations, who recovered 18.5 tonnes of ghost nets and 5 tonnes of other marine litter.
This year, Hyundai and Healthy Seas will also conduct similar drives at the coast of Croatia with a number of other locations on the agenda for later in 2022 and beyond.
