During 2022, 77,790 kilos of rubbish was plucked from the Mediterranean sea by the 900 fishing crew members across the Valencia region who are participating in the Upcycling the Oceans project.
These fishermen have altruistically been in charge of the 198 trawlers located in 15 ports: Vinaroz, Benicarló, Peñíscola, Grao de Castellón, Burriana, Valencia, Cullera, Gandía, Denia, Jávea, Calpe, Altea, Villajoyosa, Santa Pola and Torrevieja.
The Valencian Community was the first to adhere to this project since its inception and, since then, thanks to the support of the Fishermen’s Associations, State Ports, the General Sub-directorate for Fisheries, the General Sub-directorate for Ports, Airports and Coasts, and the Interfederative Commission of Fishing Guilds of the Valencian Community, “many advances have been achieved”, said the organisers of the project.
Nieves Rey, Director of Communication and Marketing at Ecoembes, has highlighted the role played by fishermen and the “importance” of more people committing to keeping marine ecosystems free of rubbish: “Fishermen are the main protagonists of this project, because they are the ones who every day, through altruistic work, take care of collecting the waste that falls into their nets and transporting it in their boats so that, once they arrive at the port, they deposit it in the corresponding containers so that it can be recycled and thus give them a second life. Without a doubt, a great example of circular economy”, he stressed.
For her part, Andrea Ruzo, general director of Fundación Ecoalf, has pointed out that “marine litter is a global problem and Upcycling the Oceans is demonstrating how the whole of society should collaborate in cleaning the oceans. To the essential work carried out by the fishermen ensuring the recycling of waste that otherwise would remain at the bottom of the sea forever, it is necessary to add citizen participation. Together we have the ability to stop dirtying the seas. Therein lies the importance of this project, in making visible a problem that, although hidden at the bottom of the sea, exists and to demonstrate, hand in hand with science, that there are solutions to avoid it”, she said.
Regarding the involvement of Valencian fishermen in the project, Vicente Pérez, president of the Interfederative Commission of Fishermen’s Associations of the Valencian Community (Coincopesca), has ensured that the work that trawlers have been doing to remove marine debris from 20-30 years ago “has been essential for seas and oceans”. “However, these types of projects make us feel supported, have means that make our work easier and encourage us to continue working to give marine litter a second life”, he highlighted.
The activity of Upcycling the Oceans in the Valencian Community has also contributed to the evolution of the project data at a national level. Specifically, during 2022, 189,844 kilos of waste were collected from the Spanish seabed. To this end, it has had the invaluable collaboration of nearly 2,600 fishermen who have been in charge of more than 600 fishing boats, mainly trawlers, located in 43 fishing ports spread over five autonomous communities: Galicia, Catalonia, the Valencian Community, and Andalusia, and Region of Murcia, where meetings and training sessions have been held that have promoted the commitment and involvement of fishermen with the project.
