Non-profit fears end of funding to recycle used fishing gear in Atlantic Canada

An environmental non-profit organization that helps recycle tonnes of used fishing gear at more than two dozen collection sites across Atlantic Canada warns it’s at risk of shutting down without continued government funding.

The Fishing Gear Coalition of Atlantic Canada says its four-year funding agreement with the federal Fisheries Department runs out on March 31, and there’s been no indication it will be renewed. Department officials were not immediately available for comment on Wednesday.

The coalition’s co-executive director, Marquita Davis, said it received a total of $550,000 through the department’s Ghost Gear Fund in the fiscal year that is coming to an end.

“It’s definitely been the backbone of our organization. It’s the reason why we incorporated and it’s the reason why we’ve been successful to date,” said Davis, who added the coalition is trying to find other avenues for funding.

She said the gear collection program helps take pressure off local landfills while finding new uses for old lobster traps and crab pots, nets and fishing rope.

The coalition, which is made up of fishing associations, environmental groups and some manufacturers, collects the used gear for free and finds recyclers to repurpose the equipment.

“Our target was at 900 tonnes for this past year and we are already over 1,000 tonnes,” Davis said.

A report done by the coalition in 2021 estimated that Nova Scotia’s lobster industry alone purchased, replaced or built about 244,400 lobster traps and 17,890 kilometres of fishing rope annually. The coalition says it has collected and recycled over 3,400 tonnes of fishing gear since 2021.

The coalition currently has 15 collection sites in Nova Scotia, five in P.E.I., four in New Brunswick, one in Newfoundland and Labrador and another in Quebec.

Davis said work is done with marine recyclers such as Plastix A/S in Denmark, which has received over 50 sea containers of material from the project over the past two years. As an example, she said the company processes fishing rope for plastic manufacturers who can use it for such things as parts for plumbing or to manufacture new rope.

Davis said her organization would eventually like to grow by expanding its number of collection sites and the types of gear it handles for recycling.

“We are trying to motivate the federal government and even the provincial governments to put resources into this really important work that’s been having an impact,” she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 13, 2024.