Clean the Gulf Project - Ghost Nets

The Crystal Waters of Sardinia – Gulf of Orosei is one of the most beautiful areas on the eastern coast of Sardinia. This destination is top-rated among cave divers. It also offers many attractive diving spots for recreational and technical divers alike. The crystal-clear, azure waters draw people in like a siren’s call.

This year, I enjoyed spending a few months in Cala Gonone—a small port town located roughly halfway along the Gulf of Orosei. The port in Cala Gonone is small, and during the summer season, it’s almost entirely taken over by small boats offering tourist cruises along the stunning rock formations, beaches, and caves. The town is clean and provides access to many outdoor activities like climbing, swimming, or hiking. Just a short walk takes you directly into wild nature.

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Ghost Nets? Here?

As a member of Ghost Diving Poland, I was asked about the possibility of conducting a ghost net recovery project on the local reefs. Initially, I was skeptical. The area isn’t known for many wrecks or reefs, which are typically anchor points where fishing gear gets lost. Even local fishermen claim that they rarely lose any nets nowadays. However, some scouting dives proved that the problem exists here as well. During these dives, we found various types of old, abandoned fishing gear—from thin gill nets and cages to thick trawl nets.

Project: Clean the Gulf and KT12 shipwreck

Based on the documentation gathered, we prepared a map of locations where ghost nets were spotted. We presented our cleanup project plan to the harbor office in Cala Gonone and coordinated the eventual waste disposal with the local municipality of Dorgali. Fabio Sagheddu became our local representative, guide, and skipper, while the Base1 Sardinia team managed all the diving logistics. Fabio Sagheddu took care of all necessary approvals and permissions from the local authorities. 

Between October 7-11, 2024, we conducted a series of dives at depths ranging from 30 to 60 meters. With only five divers’ involvement, we achieved most of our objectives. The biggest challenge was retrieving an entire trawl net that got entangled in a small reef at a depth of 60 meters and had been abandoned there about 30 years ago. Over all these years, it lay quietly at the bottom, slowly decomposing and releasing contaminants into the ocean. Lifting this behemoth from the seabed required ten lift bags with a 50-liter capacity each. After bringing the net to the surface, the next challenge was towing it to shore and then transporting it to a depot point at the harbor.

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Gulf Project Ghost Diving Poland – Ghost Net at 60m

We were fortunate that, in parallel with our project, Daniel Ortega was running another edition of his scientific Marine Genome Project. Thanks to his team’s knowledge and equipment, we were able to observe microplastics in the water samples collected from the ghost nets.

Another project outcome is a 3D model of the bow section of the KT12 shipwreck. We created this model after carefully removing fragments of ghost nets hanging on the anchor windlass of KT12 shipwreck.

All the operations were discussed and approved by local authorities. With support from the Municipality of Dorgali, all the waste we recovered was collected and disposed for further recycling.

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland Bartek Trzcinski

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Joanna Wyrebek Ghost Diving Poland

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Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland Bartek Trzcinski

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Ghost Diving Poland

Photo: Joanna Wyrebek Ghost Diving Poland

Ghost Nets after recovery on land prepared for pick and disposal.

Divers who contributed to the project:

• Bartek Trzcinski
• Joanna Wyrebek
• Marcin Pawelczyk
• Piotr Nowak
• Piotr B.
• Andrea Marassich
• Olga Martinelli
• Isadora Abuter Grebe

The project took place with support from:

Global Underwater Explorers, Ghost Diving Poland, and Divers24.

Keep Your Eyes Open

Have you seen ghost fishing gear during your dives? Please reach out to us or any organization specialized in ghost gear recovery. A sea free of ghost nets benefits everyone:

• Marine life: less contamination, fewer animals entangled and starved to death.
• Divers: safer, more attractive dive sites.
• Fishermen: fewer fish caught in ghost nets mean richer fish stocks in the area.

Ghost fishing gear is human-made waste that harms the ocean. Help us clean it up. There’s still much work to do.