In a trial run, over 800 pounds of garbage has been retained, recycled, and composted.
Trash is, unfortunately, an all to common sight across our region. Whether you’re hiking a remote backwoods river or fishing a local stream, it follows us everywhere. Bottles, bags, fishing line, wrappers, you name it, it’s everywhere. All we can do is pick it up, but the amount of waste in our beloved mountain waterways is seemingly insurmountable.
That could change with the help of an ingenious device developed by the city of Kiwana, Australia.
As a trial run to reduce waste in the Henley Reserve, officials have placed nets on 750mm and 450mm-diameter concrete drainage pipe outlets. The nets collect trash and debris, letting the water run freely into the preserve.
Since their implementation in March, they been cleaned three times. Not one animal has been found in the nets.
Over the past five months, the nets have kept around 815 pounds of trash from polluting the reserve. That’s almost one ton of trash per year. The trial run has cost around $20,000 dollars to date. According to Kwinana Mayor, Carol Adams, “After seeing the nets in action in other local government areas, the City determined the net to be the most cost-effective and safest option over other methods which can be up to four times the cost per unit and are sealed and submerged structures.”
Check out the interview with Carol below for more information on the nets.
Justin Forrest is an outdoor writer, fly fishing addict, and co-founder of Narrative North—based in Asheville, N.C. He posts pictures of cats and fishing on Instagram sometimes.
