Prevention, recover and recycle of fishing gears to obtain new products in the textile sector
Technological approaches for circular economy solutions in terms of prevention, recover, re-use and recycle of fishing gears to obtain added-value products in the textile industry.
Guarantee the viability of a circular economy of certain fishing gear trough the development of an ICT tool (prevention) and optimization (valorisation) of the recycling technologies.
Cross-border/international
Spain
Czechia
{Empty}
Madrid, Galicia and Valencia.
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Yes
EMFF : European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12/S2/03/S12
No
Yes
2021-06-30
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): AIMPLAS Plastics Technological Centre Type of organisation: University or another research institution First name of representative: Sonia Last name of representative: Albein Gender: Female Nationality: Spain Function: Mechanical Recycling Leader Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Calle Gustave Eiffel, 4 Town: Paterna Postal code: 46980 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34961366040 E-mail:salbein@aimplas.es Website:https://www.aimplas.es/
The objective of the OCEANETS project is to guarantee the viability of a circular
economy model of certain fishing gear through the development of an ICT tool for
preventing their loss and the optimization of the recycling technologies for its
valorization. This will be undertaken through the demonstration and validation of
technologies and high-added value products obtained in a technical, economic and
environmental viable value chain in the Atlantic basin, being easily transferable to
other European marine areas as well as to other regions of the world.
The OCEANETS project is focused on a reduction, monitoring and recycling scheme
for fishing gears that will lead to several benefits over the conventional management:
• Enlargement of the fishing gears life thanks to the prevention of their loss in the marine environment due to entanglements, through the development of an ICT tool, on-line and updatable, to registry and facilitate geo-localized information on the potential risk area of loss of fishing gear;
• Awareness and involvement of the fishing sector in the solutions against the marine litter in general and against discarding and loss of fishing gears in particular;
• Reducing landfilling of this waste stream, the concentration of marine litter in the marine environment, its ecological impact as well as the loss of valuable resources;
• Increase of the recycling rates of end-of-use fishing gears, through the development and validation of an improved recycling technology for obtaining a recycled material addressed to the high-quality textile sector. This will be coupled with an analysis of the secondary applications for lower quality fractions from the recycled material;
• Open up the market of high quality textile sector to products based in recycled materials obtained from recycled fishing gears;
circular economy
fishing gears
marine litter
recycling
extended producer responsibility
Around 640,000 tonnes of fishing equipment left in oceans annually, the discarded fishing equipment can remain in oceans for up to 600 years , considering that the fishing practice in Europe is 1.2% therefore the project objective waste will be 76,800 tons of fishing gear lost every year. There World Animal Protection has developed an initiative “Global Ghost Gear“ to tackle the issue, which is being supported by Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, New Zealand and Australia, but not at European level.
The OCEANETS project provide solutions in prevention and recycling of fishing gears that will be demonstrated in the Atlantic basin but will be easily transferable to other European marine areas as well as to other regions of the world.
The specific objectives of the OCEANETS project regarding sustainability will be:
• Development and validation of a “Loss of fishing gears warning tool” consisting on an ICT tool, online and updatable, to registry and facilitate geolocated information on the potential loss of fishing gear;
• Awareness raising of fishermen against marine litter and the key role they play in its prevention;
• Development and validation of an improved recycling technology for obtaining a recycled material addressed to the high-quality textile sector;
• Analysis of the secondary applications for lower quality fractions from the recycled material;
• Assessment of the cost-efficiency and the environmental impact of the tested technologies within the framework of the whole value chain;
• Definition of the most viable business model for the clothes and other textile products made of the highest quality fabrics obtained from recycled fishing nets;
• Identification of actions and recommendations to be taken in the near future to ensure the long-term sustainability of the value chain. Involvement of policy-makers and stakeholders in general in the implementation of measures for the reduction and recycling of marine litter.
In relation to the terms of quality of experience for people, at this point it is worth highlighting what is developed in the following points.
1- Implementation of public communication actions to widely inform on the different tasks and results of the project. Networking activities and specific dissemination actions in order to create operational synergies and alliances with related EU projects and other relevant stakeholders.
2- The development of the ICT TOOL.
3- The experience with new textile products, although it has not reached the market but as prototype.
Regarding the business model:
1)It has been studied without claiming cost to the nets. In this way it is commercially viable: direct production costs can be below a high - but market-acceptable - unit selling price.2)The economic viability of the project (as a new company or business line) is conditioned by factors that are beyond the scope of the project. In the theoretical exercise done with a disaggregated structure and the outsourcing of key activities, the break-even point could be reached in around 5 years.3)The model shows two important limitations: 1) the selling price is at the high threshold accepted today by the market; 2) the volume of nets available in the area can be a limiting factor for production and business growth. This means that gross margin improvement can only come from controlling production costs.
The financial viability study, establishes that, at present, with the information provided by the partners, and under the condition that the raw material does not have any cost, the project is commercially viable, as the unit production costs can be below the unit sales price.
In order to determine the economic viability of a possible business project or new line of business, an organizational structure has been designed based on the corporate strategy indicated and the estimation of these indirect structural costs. According to the 5-year projections and the different scenarios considered (more optimistic or more pessimistic), the break-even point could be reached between year 4 and year 6 from the beginning of the operations.
The model shows important limitations in its development: the sale price is in the high segment of the market; and the existence of raw material (used fishing gears) influences the maximum production threshold. To this fact we must add that the legislation that will regulate waste management has not yet been implemented, so there are significant external variables that can significantly condition the model.
Through the development of the proposed innovation, a multitude of characteristics are established that benefit both economically and environmentally. The impact on society is an intrinsic aspect that is found throughout the development of the project, either through direct workshops or press releases and articles that can reach various sectors. Regarding the needs of the client, with the execution of the project a new market is created that covers the needs and offers the opportunity for a more sustainable and responsible use of recycled materials for the textile sector in particular for this case.
Additionally, research and development on this waste stream maintains a significant change in the environment. For the calculation of treatment of about 100 tons of fishing gear, the reduction of the carbon footprint of 139.35 tons of CO2 eq is obtained and a total reduction of the demand for non-renewable fossil energy is 2655, 62 GJ, both including the direct impact of recycling and the emissions avoided from disposal and production of the virgin plastics that will be replaced. Therefore, managing to valorize the waste generated from fishing gear, it is possible to reduce pollution and impacts on the environment.
Projects where the main activity is focused on recycling tasks, that is, waste collection and more specifically in OCEANETS elimination of potentially polluting elements from the marine environment (fishing gear) both due to its composition and the problems it entails for the flora and fauna.
In addition, the target products to be developed through recycling technology have been products from the fashion sector, so it also directly affects the citizen and in their decision-making process related to environmental sustainability. Thanks to these actions, society in general increases its capacity to raise awareness regarding the problem of marine litter, its prevention and recycling.
Main sectors involved are those related to fishing nets manufactures, waste management
companies, recyclers as well as final validators or companies which transforms the recycled
plastic to a new marketable product, covering the whole value chain.
Thanks to the work being carried out in this project, compliance with European Union targets is even closer. In the initial phase, the nets used would be obtained in Galicia, as it is one of the areas of Spain with the greatest fishing activity, and therefore the greatest amount of fishing gear used and lost. This would allow access, within a range of 150 km, to the raw material needed to be able to scale up production and reach the break-even point of the business.
According to calculations made on the basis of the study "The business potential of recycling
in ports" within the "Eco-Redes II" research project, approximately 150 tons of polyamide
could be obtained annually in the area of Galician ports, which could be converted into
approximately 250,000 meters of fabric.
The marketing tasks would be centralized in Madrid due to its strategic geographical location and because it is a center of economic activity in business.
The main fields where work has been carried out has been taking into account the entire value chain within a framework of Circular Economy, therefore from design and production in which companies or companies such as technology centers, the plastics industry and the textile industry were involved. On the other hand, distribution has been taken into account, involving policy makers. One of the key parts has been reuse, collection and recycling, in this area actors such as fishermen, waste managers, port facilities, and again technology centers and the plastic industry have been involved.
The main project results obtained are:
• 1 ICT tool for the control of the loss of nets that cause ghost fishing as well as the loss of resources (nets and other fishing gear) and contamination by marine litter.
• 10 skippers testing the ICT tool to ensure its implementation and adaptation.
• Collection of more than 7 tons of fishing gear on the whole project.
• Obtention of textile demonstrators of high-quality textile fabric (with a content of more than the 90% recycled textile from fishing gear).
• Creation of an Advisory Committee (min. 5 experts)
The main new innovation phases within the project would be summarized in the following points:
1- Technological tool: To detect problem areas and thus avoid breakage and loss of fishing gear. In order to avoid the repetition of information and the saturation of points in the viewer, the tool includes a filter through which the points in a 5km radius are shown as a single point.
2- Improvement in the recycling of Polyamide (PA) nets: For this purpose, the incorporation of additives has been carried out that, on the one hand, give us an attractive color of the final product and, on the other, help us to identify, ensure and trace that the products Recycled finals are made with material from fishing nets. This activity serves us both to satisfy end customers with the new product to raise awareness through tangible demonstrators of the possibility of plastic materials.
3- Recovery of other plastic materials (PET and PE). Through this action, the scope of study is extended to other plastic fractions where there was a need, thus increasing knowledge, innovation and new methodologies for these fishing gear. The final objective of the work is to obtain technical data sheets for these specific materials that will be compared with the virgin polymers of the same category to see the difference and condition they suffer when exposed to the environment, as well as after studying the physical- mechanics that present the choice of the best final product that is coupled to them and its transformation of the material into the selected products and obtaining prototypes.
The problem of marine litter is very complex and comes largely from waste of land origin (80% of the total). The OCEANETS project will focus on waste mainly related to fishing, especially fishing nets and other fishing gear. The loss of the same, supposes a triple problem: 1) Pollution of the marine waters associated and environmental impacts, 2) Loss of resources and 3) Ghost fishing. By the project solution in prevention (A) and recycling of this waste (B) has been developed.
(A) Regarding prevention, a geolocation ICT tool for the loss of nets. The use of Global Positioning Systems by fishing boats allows vessels to avoid snagging their nets on wrecks and other potential obstacles. Currently, the identification of entanglement risk areas and therefore loss of trawl nets is an information that every fishing vessel skipper annotates in his nautical charts and is dispersed and inaccessible for fishing vessels. This ICT tool was developed by AVC.
(B) Regarding the recycling processes carried out by AIMPLAS (50%) during the execution of the project, we can divide it into two main ways (mechanical recycling and chemical recycling). In the mechanical recycling route, innovation has been made in the identification and separation methods of the treated waste, as well as in the obtaining of viable final material for the production of new products. In the chemical recycling part, from the pellets obtained in this way, innovation has been introduced in the incorporation of a tracer that facilitates the subsequent identification of the obtained prototypes, thus helping to increase awareness and sales. Finally, there is a last part of processing/manufacturing carried out by SINTEX (30%) in which the final prototype of the garments (t-shirts and leggings) containing the tracer and being well identified by the portable equipment has been obtained, thus ensuring the origin of the fishing gear. Several studies have been necessary to find a final optimal result for sale.
Regarding Oceanets Project, main replicable elements will be as follows:
1- Recycling technology, considering both ways, the mechanical and the chemical recycling. The processes developed are scalable to an industry level.
2- Process of obtaining final textile demos. In fact it was developed by a company (SINTEX) to the methodology is feasible to be transferred to other ones.
3- The ICT tool. The application was used by Spanish fishermen, but is available to be used around the world in terms to control and prevent the loss of fishing gear and recover those that have already been lost.
It is important to take into account that the OCEANETS project needs all the routes contemplated in order to carry out a good management of this waste flow that today presents a moderate management, one of the reasons being the problem of obtaining a product at the end of its useful life.
The proposal contributes to the following EU policies.
• Port Reception Facilities Directive
• European Strategy for plastics within a Circular Economy
• Baseline or first step to have knowledge and start point for a EPR. Directive on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
• United Nations Agenda 2030 (Sustainable Development Goal 14)
So, the global challenges addressed by the proposal were to reduce pollution of marine litter or fishing gears by developing different actions already mentioned.
This action were developed at a local region but with a global point of view, so it was considered to extend the knowledge to other countries due to the results were very satisfactory in relation to:
• High degree of participation by the fishermen, many problematic points of loss of nets were registered.
• The recycling methodologies were optimal when it came to treating the collected waste.
