In the Great Lakes, fishing line is an entanglement hazard for wildlife, especially in the Maumee River area. This is because thousands of fishermen brave the cooler temperatures to catch walleye, which are migrating up from Lake Erie to spawn in the river. Given the amount of line being used during this time, there is a large amount lost or discarded improperly. In order to tackle this issue, the NOAA Marine Debris Program and Ohio’s Clean Marinas program has helped us build and distribute monofilament fishing line recycling bins around the greater Toledo area.
On February 18th, a group of volunteers and representatives from the NOAA Marine Debris Program and Ohio’s Sea Grant helped us build 20 bins, which will be distributed this spring and will allow fishermen an opportunity to recycle fishing line. Once collected, the line is shipped to the Berkley Conservation Institute and repurposed into fishing products and fish habitat structure. To further engage the community, we are seeking groups to “adopt-a-bin” and clean out the bin regularly, as well as track the line collected. This is perfect for getting volunteer hours and fostering long term care of the rivers for youth groups or corporations. You can also personally support the program by sponsoring a bin, in which case your name or company’s logo is placed on the educational signage. You can learn more and register to Adopt or Sponsor a bin at http://partnersforcleanstreams.org/events/reel-in-and-recycle.