Discarded fishing gear is getting a second life as elegant, origami-inspired planters – thanks to a Glasgow-based startup transforming ocean waste into smart design
A Scottish startup wants to turn the tide on ghost gear by crafting striking geometric plant pots from plastic recovered from discarded fishing nets.
The founders of POTR reckon their ‘ocean pots’ are the world’s first planters made from traceable marine plastic. Each carries a scannable QR code linking to data that reveals when and where the ghost net was recovered.
“Traceability makes it real for people,” said POTR founder Andrew Flynn, a lecturer at The Glasgow School of Art. “The more transparent the journey, the more it sparks conversations and makes people realise they can be part of the solution.”
The Glasgow-based company has reeled in a UK supply chain, with fishing nets recovered and shredded by Cornish marine waste specialists, Waterhaul. Reclaimed plastic is pelletised, pressed into sheets and finally die cut in Edinburgh.
One study by Defra found that the fishing and aquaculture industry in Scotland and England generates around 6,000 tonnes of plastic waste a year, much of it ending up adrift in our seas, or choking shorelines.
Every tonne of recovered plastic yields 5,000 ocean pots, and POTR is donating 4 per cent of profits to cleanup efforts. The pots’ origami-inspired design means they can be flatpacked for shipping, slashing transport costs by 100 times, say the team.
Flynn said he was spurred into action after witnessing the detritus strangling Scotland’s west coast.
Waterhaul co-founder Harry Dennis added: “Ghost gear is the most damaging form of plastic in the sea. Working with POTR means we can take that material and turn it into something useful, something beautiful, something people want in their homes.”
Main image: Kirsty Anderson
Be part of the solution
Positive News is helping more people than ever to get a balanced and uplifting view of the world. While doom and gloom dominates other news outlets, our solutions journalism exists to support your wellbeing and empower you to make a difference towards a better future.
But our reporting has a cost and, as an independent, not-for-profit media organisation, we rely on the financial backing of our readers. If you value what we do and can afford to, please get behind our team with a regular or one-off contribution.
Give once from just £1, or join 1,500+ others who contribute an average of £3 or more per month. You’ll be directly funding the production and sharing of our stories – helping our solutions journalism to benefit many more people.
Join our community today, and together, we’ll change the news for good.
