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Reducing Marine Wildlife Entanglement in Tampa Bay

In the summer of 2007 Ocean Conservancy began a two-year project at the South Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier to address marine wildlife entanglement by removing fishing line debris along the Pier, the shoreline and even underwater.

The project began in June 2007 with a team of very dedicated volunteers walking the entire Pier (three miles total!) three days a week in the summer heat to collect fishing line debris. In addition, volunteer teams also interviewed 400 anglers this summer about their fishing practices to get an idea of how they handle their discarded line, if they would use monofilament recycling bins, and how often they interact with dolphins at the Pier. Surveys indicated that over half of the anglers at the Pier were not aware that monofilament fishing line could be recycled and nearly 80 percent said they would recycle their line if bins were available at the Pier.

Following the cleanups, we installed 42 Fishing Line Recycling Bins and started a program of volunteer Pier Walkers. These volunteers walk the fishing pier collecting fishing line and other trash and demonstrating "best behavior" by depositing it in the newly-installed Fishing Line Recycling Bins and trash cans. They also periodically empty the bins (and ship it off for recycling). Even more important, volunteers also speak with anglers about the importance of recycling fishing line, and proper disposal of all debris, as well as tips on how to minimize interactions with dolphins.

We are now moving into the next phase of the Fishing Pier Project: We are adding more sites!

In 2009, we expanded the project to several other fishing piers in the Tampa Bay area. We are looking for volunteers to assist at these new sites with Monthly Shoreline Cleanups as well as Pier Walking.

Cleanups are done at one site per month, typically the third Saturday. Pier Walking will be done by teams of two or more. Anyone is welcome to participate. The dates and times for Pier Walking are flexible and can be set to your schedule. We ask volunteers to commit to two shifts (2 - 4 hr/shift) per month. You can pick the days of the week and times that are best for you: weekday, weekend, morning, afternoon, and evening are all options.

Bin and Sign Installation

We will be installing the fishing line recycling bins and associated signs at each site the week (or so) following each cleanup event.

Pier Walkers

We will be starting weekly "Pier Walking" at each of these fishing piers 1-2 weeks after the cleanup of that site. Pier Walkers will:

• Receive special "Pier Walker T-shirts"
• Walk the fishing piers, speak to anglers about the importance of using the bins. Also sharing "Dolphin Friendly Fishing Tips"
• Empty the fishing line recycling bins and prepare the line for shipping to Berkley
• There will be NO formal "Angler Surveys" or "Line Collecting"

If you would like to volunteer, please contact Jamie McWade at: jmcwade@oceanconservancy.org

Thank you!

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The Ocean Conservancy, International Coastal Cleanup and Ocean Action Network are registered trademarks of Ocean Conservancy.