"Lost nets, lines and hooks trap wildlife for years as they float in the ocean, sink to the bottom or are washed ashore".

"Enough commercial fishing line is left in the ocean each year to stretch to the moon and back, according to the most comprehensive study ever completed of lost fishing equipment.

The staggering amounts of lost gear, which includes 25 million pots and traps and 14 billion hooks, was likely having deadly consequences for marine life, one of the study’s authors said.

Enough nets were lost or discarded each year to cover Scotland. If all types of lost line was tied together, it would be able to stretch round the Earth 18 times."

Graham Readfearn reports for the Guardian October 15, 2022. [2]