This year’s seabed cleanup operation in Norwegian waters, overseen the Directorate of Fisheries, has begun. Fishing vessel Vikingbank sailed from Ålesund this week and the operation will cover fishing ground as far north as Kirkenes.
This is an inititative that plays a sifgnificant role in reducing marine litter and ghost fishing from fisheries. The Directorate of Fisheries has boosted its efforts in 2026 to catch up on some of the backlog.
‘This year we will prioritise the fishing grounds between Runde and Kirkenes and clear them of lost fishing gear. The amount of gear losses in Greenland halibut fishing is less than before, and we will therefore be able to pick up more gear that has not reached the priority level previously, among other things, we are considering efforts on snow crab pots,’ said project manager and operation leader Gjermund Langedal at the Directorate of Fisheries.
There are significant costs associated with the disposal of recovered gear, especially components such as seine ropes, which are often ‘forgotten’ or dumped at sea, as well as snow crab pots with large amounts of ropes.
‘We will be able to return gear that is marked in accordance with regulations and reported lost if this is possible with the vessel’s planned progress. What is not returned will be handled by approved waste reception facilities or sent for recycling,’ he said.
There is always a strong interest in the annual cleanup initiative that the Directorate of Fisheries has conducted for over the last forty years.
‘That’s why this year we plan to broadcast live from the cleanup cruise at the Directorate of Fisheries stand E-415 at this year’s Nor-Fishing in Trondheim,’ he said.
The plan is for daily reports from Vikingbank. These reports are scheduled to start at 11:40 each day during the exhibition, 18-20th August in Trondheim.
