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Plastic beverage bottles collected during the Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup, a weeklong cleanup removing decades of accumulated debris from the shores of five islands in outer Boston Harbor (Photo Credit: Center for Coastal Studies).
In This Issue
New Alaska Marine Debris Action Plan Released
The Great Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup Results
Vessel Removals Allow for Safe Naval Operations
Collaborating to Remove Derelict Fishing Gear
BoatUS Foundation Announces 10 New Projects
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Monitoring Toolbox
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The NOAA Marine Debris Monitoring and Assessment Project (MDMAP) has an updated Monitoring Toolbox! Check out the new video tutorials and database visualization tools, along with refreshed guides and field datasheets. The Monitoring Toolbox contains all of the resources you need to get started.
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New Alaska Marine Debris Action Plan Released
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Check out the full Action Plan!
The NOAA Marine Debris Program is pleased to share the Alaska Marine Debris Action Plan (Action Plan). This document is the result of a collaborative effort between the NOAA Marine Debris Program and partners across Alaska, including federal, state, and local governments; nongovernmental organizations; industry; academia; and Alaska Native Communities. It represents a partner-led effort to guide marine debris progress across the state. This Action Plan is a tool that can promote increased awareness across the growing Alaska marine debris community, leading to wider collaboration and coordination. It will also help to frame the challenges associated with resource and logistical limitations and identify effective activities, projects, or initiatives.
Check out the new Action Plan.
The Great Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup Results
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Volunteers sorting marine debris items collected during the Great Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup (Photo Credit: NOAA).
Through a collaborative effort, the Center for Coastal Studies, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the National Park Service, and Boston Harbor Now organized the Great Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup. This unique partnership removed over 47,000 pounds of marine debris from five islands in Boston Harbor. With support in part from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, the partners surveyed the islands for debris hotspots, recruited volunteers, arranged accommodations, and coordinated vessels that hauled the debris, crew, and supplies between the islands and the mainland. Volunteers removed 2,000 pounds of scrap metal, 400 pounds of plastic bottles, and over 2,000 pounds of plastic foam pieces. This cleanup effort supports safe shorelines for local tourism and healthy habitats for wildlife.
Learn more about this project.
Vessel Removals Allow for Safe Naval Operations
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Lynnhaven River NOW removed a trawler jammed into a culvert that was impeding Navy operations in Willoughby Bay, Virginia (Photo Credit: Lynnhaven River NOW).
With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, Virginia-based nonprofit Lynnhaven River NOW began their Broken Down Boats Removal Program this summer. Their goal is to remove up to 100 abandoned and derelict vessels throughout Virginia’s coastal zone. From a long list of boats identified and managed by the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, Lynnhaven River NOW first targeted two vessels that blocked important operations near the shores of Naval Station Norfolk in Willoughby Bay. The team removed a sunken sailboat with its mast sticking out of the water as well as a sunken vessel that was jammed into a tidal culvert. These vessels created safety risks and presented navigational hazards for boaters and Navy helicopters. Additional removals in Willoughby Bay will continue throughout the summer before the team moves on to other coastal communities in Virginia.
Learn more about this project.
Collaborating to Remove Derelict Fishing Gear
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Derelict fishing traps removed from the water by local fishers during their offseason (Photo Credit: Conservación ConCiencia).
With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, The Ocean Foundation is partnering with Conservación ConCiencia to employ local fishers during their offseason to remove abandoned, lost, and derelict fishing gear from their fishing grounds in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, specifically St. Croix. Lost fishing gear is a concern for coastal communities because gear left in the water will continue to capture marine animals and deplete harvestable seafood resources, become entangled in active traps, and create hazards for fishers and boaters. Since April, Conservación ConCiencia has hired 17 fishers and, together, they have removed over 32,000 pounds of lost traps. This project supports a successful commercial fishing industry, protects sensitive ecosystems, reduces the likelihood of debris reaccumulation in the future, and provides alternative income opportunities for commercial fishers in the offseason.
Learn more about this project.
The BoatUS Foundation Announces 10 New Projects Under the Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program
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This hidden cove adjacent to Roque Bluffs State Park, Maine, which has been used as a local dumping ground for end-of-life commercial vessels for years, will have ADVs removed as part of a groundbreaking removal program (Photo Credit: John Noll, State of Maine).
We are pleased to announce, in partnership with the BoatUS Foundation, 10 new marine debris removal projects under the Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program. These projects represent an investment of nearly $7.4 million for removal of abandoned and derelict vessels with funds provided by the NOAA Marine Debris Program. The projects will remove derelict vessels in Alaska, Guam, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, Washington, and U.S. Virgin Islands.
Learn more about these projects.
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