The Underwater Cultural Heritage Unit (UCHU) within Heritage Malta, in its continuing collaboration with the local ATLAM dive club, has completed another net removal project from one of Heritage Malta’s underwater sites – the B24 Liberator aircraft, located off the southern coast of Malta.

Ghost gear – abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear – constitutes around 10% of the plastic waste that enters the world’s oceans and seas every year. In addition, it is estimated that around 70% of all floating macro-plastics are made up of ghost gear. The danger in this type of waste is its material durability and buoyancy, persisting in the marine environment for decades. Historic wreck sites attract marine life but also act as catchment areas for discarded fishing gear, entangling and damaging historic remains and marine life. The threat is also there to visiting divers, often unaware of the dangers of ghost gear.

In recent years there has been a growing awareness on the threats posed by ghost gear, and a growing number of grassroot initiatives, both locally and internationally have targeted this problem. In Malta, the presence of ghost gear on historic wreck sites has been noted throughout diver surveys and as a result, Heritage Malta, in collaboration with the local ATLAM Sub Aqua Club, has initiated a long-term net removal project on its underwater sites.