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Project Highlights

These highlights feature accomplishments from select projects supported by the NOAA Marine Debris Program. Get a glimpse into our partners' removal work, as featured on social media, and learn more about the larger projects behind it.

Two crabbers hook a rusty trap and pull it out of the water into a boat on a gray day.

The Benefits of Derelict Trap Removal: Industry Perspectives

William and Mary's Batten School and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) is leading a national competitive grant program for the removal of derelict fishing traps, creating a national database for data collection, and assessing potential solutions to the environmental and economic impacts of lost gear. The multi-cycle competitive grant program is part of the Trap Removal, Assessment, and Prevention (TRAP) program. Trap removal supports commercial fisheries, ecotourism, and coastal economies.
A barge being used to remove a sunken crane from a waterway.

Removing Large Debris to Improve Providence’s Working Waterfront

With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management removed a 114 foot-long abandoned Navy barge from the Port of Providence, Rhode Island.
An excavator breaking down a derelict vessel and moving debris into a dumpster.

Deconstructing Derelict Vessels in Washington Waters

Owning a boat comes with significant maintenance and repair costs that can become overwhelming for owners, sometimes leading to vessel neglect or abandonment. To address this issue, the Washington Department of Natural Resources, with support from a 2024 award from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, is removing derelict vessels from Puget Sound and supporting prevention efforts through its voluntary Vessel Turn-In Program.
Fishers pulling a derelict crab pot onboard their vessel.

One Year of Removing and Preventing TRAPS Across the Nation

William and Mary's Batten School and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) is leading a national competitive grant program for the removal of derelict fishing traps, creating a national database for data collection, and assessing potential solutions to the environmental and economic impacts of lost gear. The multi-cycle competitive grant program is part of a Trap Removal, Assessment, and Prevention (TRAP) program.
A group of people bringing trash bags full of marine debris on board a vessel during a cleanup.

Responsibly Responding to Fishing Gear through a Northeast Coalition

With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, the Center for Coastal Studies is leading a new coalition of nongovernmental organizations and commercial enterprises across the Northeast to remove, collect, document, and recycle, repurpose, or properly dispose of fishing gear from the Gulf of Maine’s water and shorelines. The Great Boston Harbor Islands Cleanup, a collaborative effort from this project, resulted in the removal of over 47,000 pounds of marine debris from five islands in Boston Harbor.
A scuba diver removing a derelict lobster trap underwater.

Collaborating to Remove Derelict Fishing Gear in the U.S. Caribbean

With the support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, The Ocean Foundation and Conservación ConCiencia are working with local fishing communities from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to implement a fishing trap turn-in program and large-scale, impactful removals of lost or abandoned derelict fishing gear.
A derelict vessel lifted into the sky by a helicopter.

Removing Derelict Vessels on Squaxin Islands Tribal Tidelands in Washington

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources' Derelict Vessel Removal Program, with support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program and in partnership with the Squaxin Island Tribe and the Port of Olympia, airlifted 14 abandoned vessels via helicopter from the shoreline of Squaxin Island in Washington’s Puget Sound.