A mound of ropes, net, and other fishing gear piled on a rocky shoreline.

Regional Collaboration to Address Marine Debris in the Gulf of Maine

This project was funded through the 2020 United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) Implementation Act (P.L. 116-113), which provided the NOAA Marine Debris Program funding to prevent and reduce marine debris in the North American region. Chapter 24 of the USMCA includes specific environmental goals that highlight the need to take action to prevent and reduce marine debris, including plastic litter and microplastics, in order to preserve human health and marine and coastal ecosystems, prevent the loss of biodiversity, and mitigate the costs and impacts of marine debris. This project was awarded competitively and meets the environment goals of the USMCA by promoting waste infrastructure and removing marine debris from shorelines across the Gulf of Maine in the United States and Canada.

Partners across the Gulf of Maine prevented and removed marine debris by engaging volunteers, local businesses, coastal communities, and fishing industries in shoreline cleanups and outreach efforts.

Type of Project: North America Marine Debris Prevention and Removal

Region: Northeast

Project Dates: October 2021 - March 2024

Who was involved?

With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, the Gulf of Maine Association worked in partnership with the Gulf of Maine CouncilCenter for Coastal StudiesUrban Harbors InstituteSurfrider FoundationBlue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation, and Huntsman Marine Science Centre to reduce marine debris by conducting shoreline cleanups and implementing actions to prevent marine debris from entering the Gulf of Maine.

What was the project and why is it important?

The Gulf of Maine is a dynamic ecosystem that provides important habitat for countless coastal and marine species. It’s also home to commercial and recreational fisheries and supports many livelihoods in coastal communities from Cape Cod all the way to Nova Scotia. Its 7,500 miles of international coastline present a unique opportunity for cross-border collaboration and stewardship between nations.

Project partners conducted an international collaborative effort to address plastics and other marine debris in the Gulf of Maine ecosystem. Partners implemented coastal cleanups, expanded recycling, hosted outreach and awareness programs, and engaged businesses and community members in reducing plastics and other sources of marine debris in support of the 2019 Gulf of Maine Marine Debris Action Plan.

The Center for Coastal Studies conducted beach cleanups along Cape Cod. They also partnered with the Urban Harbors Institute and Nova Scotia Beach Garbage Awareness to host cleanups along the coast of mainland Massachusetts and Nova Scotia, respectively. In addition to leading do-it-yourself cleanups across the Gulf of Maine, Surfrider Foundation hosted cleanups  in coastal communities to help elevate awareness of marine debris. Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation expanded their Adopt-a-Beach Program by increasing cleanups in the Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in New Hampshire and expanding cleanups in Maine. They also encouraged proper disposal of fishing line by expanding their monofilament recycling program to new locations in New Hampshire and southern Maine. Small PVC collection tubes were installed in high-traffic recreational fishing locations. In New Brunswick, Huntsman Marine Science Centre implemented coastal cleanups and expanded recycling and reuse of rope associated with fishing gear.

This international collaboration allowed partners in each state and province across the entire Gulf of Maine to work together to share knowledge and lessons learned so that protected species, fisheries, ocean and coastal habitats, recreation areas, and other natural resources are better protected from the harmful effects of marine debris.

What were the results? 

Through this project, partners removed more than 57,000 pounds of debris from more than 7,500 acres of coastal environments. They hosted 552 cleanups conducted with support from over 4,600 volunteers. With monofilament fishing line collection bins installed in coastal communities, they collected and recycled 37 pounds of monofilament line. Through the use of bins for collecting old, unwanted rope, and rope weaving workshops, they also recycled, repurposed, or disposed of more than 21,000 pounds of rope. Through education and outreach efforts, they engaged more than 600 P-12 students and nearly 16,000 other youth and adults.

For more information about this project, visit the Marine Debris Program Clearinghouse.

For citation purposes, unless otherwise noted, this article was authored by the NOAA Marine Debris Program.

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