How a broker cleans up in the North Sea

You don’t have to believe in ghosts, but ghost nets are a sad reality. Between 640,000 and 800,000 tons of industrial fishing gear are disposed of or lost in the world’s oceans every year – abandoned fishing nets in particular become an agonizing death trap for many marine life under water. According to Greenpeace, there are 1,000 wrecks on the seabed in the southern North Sea alone – each one has one of the so-called ghost nets.

At the beginning of May this year there should be a few fewer – and that is also thanks to Timo Vierow, owner of the brokerage company Tauch.versicherung. Together with Bessergrün, the joint venture of NV Versicherung, Itzehoer and Inter, and the divers of the newly founded association “Ghost Diving Germany” the plan is to set sail from the East Frisian town of Neuharlingersiel in the first week of May. Ghost nets are also floating in the Wadden Sea between Borkum and Wilhelmshaven, endangering seals, porpoises and other animals.

“In the North Sea, practically nobody does that”

While environmental protection organizations such as the WWF and Greenpeace have long been salvaging the abandoned nets in other seas, the North Sea is still criminally neglected territory. “Practically nobody does that in the North Sea,” observes Vierow. The reasons for this are obvious: Even for the experienced divers from “Ghost Diving Germany” the planned salvage operation should not be a walk (dive).

“The North Sea is one of the most challenging diving areas ever,” warns Vierow. Strong currents, cloudy visibility and the interplay of the tides are a challenge even for experienced underwater sports enthusiasts. The insurance broker knows what he is talking about – Vierow is not only a passionate diver himself, he has also tailored his brokerage activities to the target group of divers.

The campaign is also new territory for the insurers involved. So far, a tree has usually been planted for every sustainable insurance taken out – now, thanks to the initiative of the Bremen insurance broker, the focus is also being extended to the sea. The idea came to him in a conversation with NV board member Henning Bernau, with whom Vierow had already cooperated on a household insurance policy specifically for divers. Bernau was quickly convinced. “His office is right behind the dike, so you can see the sea from the office,” recalls Vierow.

The ghost nets pose a danger not only to the marine fauna, but also to humans – both directly and indirectly. The sun and the tides decompose all the plastic in the sea and with it the nets, which are often made of polyethylene, polyamide or polyester. The ever-smaller parts – the so-called microplastics – finally get back onto people’s plates via the stomachs of the fish.

create awareness

And for divers – and thus Vierow’s target group – the ghost nets represent a very serious danger. “That’s also why divers should always have a cutting tool with them so that they can free themselves if the worst comes to the worst,” advises scuba diver Vierow.

Will there be further actions after the Ostfriesland project at the beginning of May? “It’s quite possible,” says Vierow – but now it’s a matter of organizing and implementing this ambitious project. Success is not measured solely by the number of nets recovered. Equally important is raising awareness of a problem that still too often slips through the meshes of public awareness.

A notice: If you want to learn more about the “Ostfriesland project”, can contact Timo Vierow for further information.

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