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| Derelict fishing gear getting ready to be recycled and turned into energy! Photo courtesy of B. Zeiber, NH Sea Grant |
NHSG/UNHCE Extension Specialist, Dr. Gabby Bradt and NHSG
Doyle Fellow Katherine Rafuse recently attended a reception for the Fishing For
Energy Partnership and got a tour of the facility where N.H.’s marine debris — specifically,
derelict fishing gear — is turned into energy. Dr. Bradt spoke briefly about the progress of
the program in NH(which is run in partnership with Blue Ocean Society for Marine
Conservation) .
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| The Fishing for Energy Primary partners. Photo courtesy of B. Zeiber, NH Sea Grant |
There are seven ports in northern New England that have
dumpsters dedicated to derelict fishing gear, like old lobster traps, fishing
nets and monofilament line. This access to dumpsters specifically for fishing
gear is critical because most transfer stations won’t take the gear. This past April, the 20+ tons of derelict lobster traps that were collected from NH beaches in the Annual Lobster Trap cleanup, were taken to Covanta Energy, an energy-from-waste plant
in Haverhill, Mass., as part of the NH Marine Debris to Energy Program. This
program provides a safe, reliable way for fishermen and cleanup volunteers to
dispose of the fishing gear they encounter at sea or on the beach.
More than two million pounds of derelict fishing gear has
been collected as part of NOAA’s nationwide Marine Debris to Energy Program
since 2008. NOAA has partnered with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation,
Schnitzer Steel and Covanta Energy to continue providing the services necessary
to collect and convert 300,000 pounds of fishing gear annually into energy for
use in our homes.
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| Fishing rope, derelict lobster traps and other fishing debris. Photo courtesy of B. Zeiber, NH Sea Grant |
As a mass-burn facility, Covanta does not need to break
down the trash and fishing gear before combusting it. They first recycle
whatever they can and remove anything radioactive. Whatever is left gets
visually inspected, piled up and picked up by a giant claw and placed in the
boiler for combustion.
This Covanta plant has pollution control technologies
associated with it, so it’s more than just an incinerator. It captures the
energy from the process and sells about 40 Megawatts per hour to the utility
companies, or about 1,000 Megawatts per day, powering approximately 40,000
homes in a city the size of Haverhill, said Joe Becker, facility manager at
Covanta.
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| L-R: NHSG Doyle Fellow, Katherine Rafuse, NFWF coordinator, Erin Hoffman, NOAA Marine Debris Program Deputy Director, Nanacy Wallace and NHSG Fisheries Extension Specialist, Dr. Gabby Bradt. Photo courtesy of B. Zeiber, NH Sea Grant |
For more information on the energy-from-waste process,
please visit: http://www.covantaenergy.com/what-we-do/energy-from-waste.aspx
By Rebecca Zeiber
NH Sea Grant, Communications
