As part of its sustainability strategy, Neste Latvija will focus on the health of the Baltic Sea and practically mitigate the effects of lost fishing nets. In the near future, Neste Latvija, together with its partners and with the help of divers, will remove the first ghost nets from the sea near the port of Engure.
To draw attention to the level of pollution in the Baltic Sea and the threat to biodiversity, industry experts discussed the issue of ghost nets at the Lampa festival and explained why it is important to pay attention to it now.
"Ghost nets are any abandoned or lost fishing gear that continues to fish unchecked for many years after it has been put to sea. Given that nowadays nets are mostly made of plastic, these nets slowly degrade after they are lost and thus become long-term pollutants due to microplastics.
In addition to being dangerous for ships, as they can cause significant damage by wrapping around the propeller of a vessel, uncontrolled roaming nets are also a major threat to the biodiversity of the Baltic Sea, with fish and other marine creatures, including seals, becoming entangled and dying in the nets every year. It is estimated that around 10 000 ghost nets are lost in the Baltic Sea every year, so every ghost net that is pulled out counts," explains Magda Jentgen, Head of the World Wildlife Fund's Baltic Sea and Freshwater Programme.
The Baltic Sea and its biodiversity are an important part of the focus of Neste Latvija's sustainability strategy. "As one of the most sustainable companies in the world, Neste cares about the planet we leave for our children. The Baltic Sea, where we live, is the closest thing we have to care for, so we understand that the Baltic Sea needs immediate support in its recovery process, given the pollution and biodiversity threat indicators.
We will soon carry out the first stage of the Baltic Sea clean-up - in cooperation with the Latvian Maritime Academy of Riga Technical University and the Science and Innovation Centre near the port of Engure, we have identified a shipwreck that will soon be cleaned of ghost nets with the help of divers, and we will know about further plans as soon as the first results after the project launch are available," Armands Beiziķis, Chairman of the Board of SIA Neste Latvija, says about the plans.
Associate Professor of Riga Technical University Latvian Maritime Academy Dr.oec. Astrīda Rijkure explained during the discussion that identifying "ghost networks" and diving in the Baltic Sea is a complicated process for several reasons. "The Baltic Sea is already black at night at a depth of 10m, and weather conditions also significantly limit the ability of humans to explore the seabed. This is why it is so important that we have now prepared sketches of the additional equipment for the underwater drone, which we plan to prototype soon.
This additional equipment will, in the very near and foreseeable future, allow unrestricted underwater surveys of shipwrecks and will also make it easier to clear wrecks of ghost nets and to recover them from the seabed. We are also delighted to be challenging our students this autumn to find a use for the ghost nets they catch, thus contributing to a successful circular economy."
Explaining the work done so far to combat ghost nets, Evija Šmite, Deputy Director General of the State Environmental Service and Director of the Fisheries Control Department, said: "The State Environmental Service removes around 2,000 nets from inland waters every year - both legal and illegal, but the Baltic Sea has not yet been cleaned up because the process is complicated by the fact that the Baltic Sea is much deeper, colder and wider than rivers and lakes, so the resources needed are much greater.
Now that Latvia holds the presidency of HELCOM, our primary task is to ensure the implementation of the Baltic Sea Action Plan and to develop a common system by the end of 2024 to ensure that all fishing nets are traceable and accounted for in the system, so that every fishing net can be tracked and not become another ghost net in the Baltic Sea."
On how everyone can help to tackle ghost nets, the experts explained that the State Environmental Service's "Environment SOS" app should be used to report the discovery of a ghost net. Pulling nets out on your own can be dangerous, so you should definitely not do it yourself. It is also possible to help by choosing only certified seafood, thus supporting fisheries that do not develop ghost nets.
About Neste
Neste (NESTE, Nasdaq Helsinki) creates solutions to combat climate change and accelerate the transition to a circular economy. We recycle waste, residues and innovative raw materials into renewable fuels and sustainable raw materials for plastics and other materials. We are the world's leading producer of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel, developing chemical recycling to tackle the plastic waste problem.
Our goal is to help customers reduce greenhouse gas emissions through our renewable and circular economy solutions by at least 20 million tonnes every year. We aim to make the Porvo refinery in Finland the most sustainable of its kind in Europe by 2030. We are introducing renewable and recycled raw materials, such as liquefied plastic waste, as feedstock for the refinery. We are committed to carbon-neutral production by 2035 and to reducing the carbon intensity of the products we sell by 50% by 2040. We have also set high standards for biodiversity, human rights and supply networks. We are consistently listed among the world's most sustainable companies in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and the Global 100. In 2022, Neste had revenues of €25.7 billion. Read more: neste.com
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