Content on this page requires a newer version of Adobe Flash Player.

Get Adobe Flash player
 

  • Nederlands
  • Deutsch
Search in the Encyclopedia

Dieren en planten

Water en land

Waste covenant for the Dutch fisheries

The Covenant Waste Products Fisheries has been functioning since 1 January 1995. In 1997, almost three fourths of the fishing fleet was a member of the Stichting Financiering Afvalstoffen Visserij ('Finance Waste Products for Fisheries Foundation'). The members can turn in their oil-holding wastes at every Dutch fishing harbour. The amount of collected waste is beginning to increase since the covenant went in effect. Inspections by the Coastguard and the water police in 1997 showed that the fishermen now generally deal with their waste in a responsible manner.

  • Waste collection

    The costs of a year subscription for collecting oil-holding wastes (used oil and bilge water - water mixed with oil from the hold and the engine room) depends upon the type of ship. Small ships up to 295 hp are allowed to hand in a yearly maximum of 1000 liters of bilge and used oil for around 250 euros. Larger ships with a motor capacity greater than 1200 hp are allowed 8000 liters for 1250 euros. The exact prices are can be found on the website of the Financing Wastes Materials for Fisheries. In addition, these ships can dispose of 50 to 350 kilograms of small dangerous wastes, such as fats, cleaning rags, paint cans and batteries. In 2002, the Netherlands collected close to 1.5 million liters of bilge and used oil and 72 thousand kilograms of small dangerous waste.

  • Wastes from the sea bottom

    Fishermen complain that they keep fishing up more and more wastes from the sea floor. Initiatives for bringing the wastes to a dumping place on land have not succeeded because there are not yet any good regulations. In 1992, experiments were started with waste containers on fishing ships. However, the transportation of the waste from the nets to the shore needed to be paid. Because fishermen did not want to cover the costs, they threw it back into the sea. The Fishermen's Union in Den Helder (Samenwerking) estimated that all the fishing boats in the Netherlands together fish up several hundred tons of waste per week. According to them, particularly ships from the former Eastern Block are guilty of dumping household wastes in the sea. The wastes contain refrigerators and chemicals such as paint remains.
    In 2004, the lobby group North Sea Foundation organized a Marine Forum about wastes in sea. During this forum, various involved people talked about the amounts of wastes that flow in the North Sea, the roll of different parties as source and solution of the problem and bottlenecks in how to attack it. The goal of the meeting was to reach a consensus about the problems and to find solutions concerning methods of approach.

  • Experimental project 'Vuilvissen' (fishing rubbish)
    Big Bag, Ecomare

    Since 2000, ten Texel and Den Helder fishing vessels have a 'big bag' on board for collecting fished up marine litter. At the end of the trip, they usually have more than 300 kilograms of waste. After five years, 460 tons of garbage has been fished out of the sea. The fishermen are still very enthusiastic, despite the lack of financial compensation. Rijkswaterstaat (RWS) pays for the costs of transportation and processing of the waste. IJmuiden also joined the project in 2005 and in Lauwersoog in 2007.