Co-founder of Healthy Seas Foundation
According to FAO, 640,000 tons of fishing gear are left or abandoned in the seas and oceans each year. The nets, remain on the seabed for many years and pose a severe threat to many marine animals like whales, turtles and fish.
To tackle the problem of sea pollution, in 2013 Aquafil co-founded “The Healthy Seas”, a foundation that spreads awareness on marine litter prevention and organises cleanups with volunteer divers.
The nylon fishing nets collected are regenerated, together with other nylon waste, into ECONYL® yarn while the other types of plastics are also reused or recycled.
The project also includes school encounters aimed at raising awareness of plastic pollution in our oceans. The project, which was initially launched on the coasts of Belgium and the Netherlands in the North Sea, has now been extended to Italy, Greece, the United Kingdom, and the USA.
Discover more on healthyseas.org.