Marine Debris Division Partner Announces $412,000 in Fishing for Energy Grants for FY21
AUGUST 23, 2021 ─ On August 19, NOAA Marine Debris Division (MDD) partner, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), announced eight grants totaling $412,000 through the Fishing for Energy partnership to support activities in California, Connecticut, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Oregon to reduce the amount of derelict fishing gear in the marine environment.
The Fishing for Energy program is a partnership between NOAA MDD, NFWF, Schnitzer Steel Industries, and Covanta that began in 2008 to promote proper disposal of old, unusable, and derelict fishing gear. The program provides no-cost options for fishers to properly dispose of their gear, and this year’s program included a new element that supported organizations and ports to develop the capacity to host collection bins in future years. Since the program’s inception, it has provided collection bins at 56 ports in 13 states, and collected over 4 million pounds of fishing gear.
For further information, contact Steve.Morrison@noaa.gov.