Press Release

DISPOSAL OF REDUNDANT FISHING GEAR

19 JANUARY 2007

 

In its ongoing drive to improve the marine environment within Stornoway Harbour , Stornoway Port Authority is actively seeking to introduce and support any measures taken to clean up the seas.

 

The Port Authority engaged the services of a workboat last summer, recovering some 60 tonnes of scrapped fishing gear from the seabed within the harbour.

 

Following consultative meetings with fishing industry representatives, the Port Authority is pleased to report a breakthrough with regard to the disposal of redundant trawl warps.

 

Recently, a local owner/skipper made a direct approach to the Harbour Master, as to the most environmentally friendly means of disposing of some 500m of used wires from each of his two boats. A suitable method was agreed and the Port Authority provided a skip for the wires to be dumped in landfill. Despite some earlier concerns that this operation would be laborious and time consuming, the transfer of wires from boat to quayside skip, took only an hour per boat.

 

Commenting, Harbour Master Captain Torquil Macleod said "This is a first within the Port and the Authority very much welcomes the responsible approach taken by this particular skipper. It is hoped that others will now follow his example and cease the historical practice of dumping warps at sea".

 

The Port Authority in conjunction with other local agencies such as the Western Isles Fishermen's Association is investigating the possibility of acquiring a spooler to accept redundant trawl wires from boats, in order to facilitate an easier transfer of such material to the quayside waste skips. Once this hardware is installed, it may encourage skippers and crews to take a more responsible approach to waste disposal of gear.