Fishers and green groups clear tons of lost sea nets to save marine life

Over eleven thousand kilos of discarded and lost fishing gear were cleared from the Chennai coast over a three-month period, mostly between Neelankarai and Kovalam. TREE Foundation, a local group focused on marine protection, runs a network of fishers called the Sea Turtle Protection Force to pull these hazards out of the water.

Operations And Incentives

Since twenty twenty-one, the organisation has relied on local fishing communities to spot and haul away heavy underwater traps that weigh anywhere from one hundred to seven hundred kilos. These groups operate across an eight hundred kilometer stretch covering two hundred eighty-five villages and involve four hundred eleven community members. Fishers receive cash payments for the weight they bring ashore, with half the money going directly to their bank accounts and the rest deposited into accounts for wives or mothers to help fund children's schooling and family emergencies. Corporate backers like Royal Enfield, AstraZeneca, and HCLFoundation help finance these retrieval and reward efforts. TREE Foundation founder Supraja Dharani notes that monsoons bring higher volumes of floating debris close to the shore due to changing wind patterns.

Recycling And Expansion

Retrieved gear goes through weighing and recycling processes, with plans underway to build a local facility that will shred the material into small tiles. Workers have already used some recovered nylon to build a pathway at a Marakkanam biodiversity center. Beyond shoreline cleanups, HCLFoundation works with certified divers to search deep ocean waters, partnering with the Ministry of Environment and various local forces. HCLFoundation director Nidhi Pundhir explains that salt-coated nylon requires special research and development before it can turn into sports nets or bags. The group also runs a mobile application with real-time tracking features and recently hosted an innovation challenge for university students to design upcycled products.

Context

Discarded fishing gear remains a major threat to global marine ecosystems because synthetic materials do not break down easily in saltwater. Animals like sea turtles and fish often swim into these invisible barriers and get trapped, which stops them from feeding or swimming to the surface. Local cleanup programs help protect coastal biodiversity while providing alternative income streams for fishing families through recycling and incentive models.