Thought to be the most comprehensive program of its kind, the project will combine hands-on cleanup – both above and below the waterline – with long-term solutions including enhanced signage, recycling bins and “pier walkers” who deliver personalized information throughout the year.
“We know there’s a lot of line down there and we think it’s getting worse,” said Jessica Koelsch, The Ocean Conservancy’s marine wildlife program manager. The program kicks off with a series of surveys this summer interviewing anglers about their knowledge and attitudes toward marine debris, monofilament
line and dolphin entanglement.
Volunteers, ranging from people participating in the Pinellas County International Coastal Cleanup on Sept. 15 to data collectors and pier walkers who sign up for months-long shifts, will be critical to the effort, she adds. Volunteer data collectors are on the job now, helping team leaders survey fishermen, and more volunteers will be needed Sept. 3 to 21 as professional divers scour the bottom of the bay. “We’ll have professionals in the water but we need monitors on top to direct fishermen away from the divers,” she said.
Beginning in October, 25 to 30 pier walkers will be asked to sign up for four hour shifts as part of a two-person team to clean up line, monitor the recycling bins and interact with anglers to raise awareness of the dangers of monofilament debris.
Dolphin interaction, she adds, is particularly important on the Skyway where the highly adept creatures are attracted by a wide variety of fish – and have learned to get bait or fish off hooked lines, generally without getting hooked themselves.
For more information or to volunteer, contact Koelsch at 727-895-2118, extension 114 or email jkoelsch@oceanconservancy.org.
Monofilament Line by the Numbers
• From 1980-1999 one in every five manatees rescued in Florida had been entangled in monofilament fishing line.
• From 1996-2000, the Florida Marine Research Institute documented 163 turtles that were entangled in fishing line.
• Between 1995-2000 approximately 35 dolphins in the SE US died as a result of monofilament-related injuries.
• Researchers have documented over 60 species of fish that have swallowed or become entangled in marine debris.
• During 1999-2000 over 250 seabirds were rescued in Florida following hook and line entanglements, of those, 92 died.
Article originally published Summer 2007
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