WATERHAUL EXISTS TO ERADICATE GHOST GEAR BY TRANSFORMING IT INTO A REUSABLE AND VALUABLE RESOURCE.
Lost, abandoned or discarded fishing gear, that loses its purpose but continues with its function; to catch and kill marine life, also known as 'Ghost Gear', is the most harmful, abundant and strongest form of ocean plastic.
The problem is getting worse, growing by 640,000 tonnes every year.
Our Mission
Waterhaul is a Cornish social-enterprise focused on tackling the problem of ghost gear and creating a complete end-of-life recycling solution for fishing gear, ropes and marine plastics in the UK.
By recovering, recycling and redesigning end-of-life fishing gear, we transform it into a valuable resource, and through giving worth to this ‘waste’ we can incentivise both the recovery and prevention of marine plastic pollution.
Our Story So Far
We founded Waterhaul in 2018 as frustrated marine conservationists who were regularly finding ghost fishing gear across our favourite beaches. The pile of collected nets, ropes and lines in our gardens grew and grew (as did our neighbours' disapproval of the smell), motivating us to find a solution.
A key moment in our inception was the realisation that all of the properties that make fishing gear such a problem; its strength, durability and abundance, all combine to make it a desirable recycling resource and a priority target to remove from the ocean.
After many recycling trials, material failures and prototypes, we produced our first pair of sunglasses in 2018 and founded Waterhaul, repurposing the fisheries term 'waterhaul' meaning an empty catch. Unlike it's original negative connotations, for us, hauling an empty net from the ocean is a success core to our mission.
Our Impact
Our recovery efforts include direct recoveries from the coastline, but also focuses on creating a highly-scalable circular economy solution for end-of-life gear at the source. By addressing this gap in current waste infrastructure, we can relieve the financial and structural disincentives which fishers currently face.
Our entire recycling process takes place within the UK, minimising the carbon footprint of our operations and producing high-performance and versatile recycled polymers. This process is supported by our industry-leading traceability system through the entire supply chain, from port to pellet, adding value to the final output.
74429 kg
Of end of life fishing gear recycled to date.
58829 Kg
Of fishing gear recycled in 2025.
341
Fishing gear collections in 2025.
Our Process
Turning waste into a valueable resource.
Recover.
We recover fishing gear from across the UK coastline, as well as working directly with ports and harbours to collect end-of-life gear from the source.
Recycle
Gear is separated by polymer type, and then recycled into our Traceable Marine Plastic polymers through a mechanical process of shredding, washing and agglomeration.
Redesign.
Our 100% recycled raw material is then injection moulded to create our products, as well as being distributed to other brands and manufacturers for use in their own production lines.
Traceability & Transparency
Traceability is our vehicle to demonstrate and communicate the positive impact behind our plastic and unlocking the maximum value for the material. By anchoring our materials to their precise recovery locations along the UK coastline, we provide the storytelling that unlocks an emotional connection, backed with credibility, that differentiates our products.
Our rigorous traceability standards mean that we can account for every kilogram of material we recover and recycle. A digital, QR-code enabled system allows our customers to trace their products and view the exact details of the recoveries behind them. This system provides our polymers with authenticity, trust and connection.
Our Products
Our products support a global community in connecting with and protecting the ocean.
We're passionate about combining adventure with purpose; action on the ocean, for the ocean. Our products are designed to meet the demands of this environment and enhance your experience whilst symbolising and inspiring marine conservation.
Founders Story
"For the both of us, this journey started with a connection to the ocean.
Surfing and a passion for marine wildlife led us to pursuing careers in marine science. This connection, along with a deeper understanding of the threats faced by the marine environment, drove a desire to protect what we love.
Our roles involved both lobbying and informing policy on plastic pollution and supporting the UK’s largest beach cleaning network. This gave a unique insight which highlighted a major gap in action; the most abundant and most harmful form of ocean plastic pollution, which we encountered on every beach we visited, was being ignored. So we set out to tackle it.
We've repurposed the fisheries term 'waterhaul' meaning an empty catch. Unlike it's original negative connotations, for us, hauling an empty net from the ocean is a success core to our manifesto.
Since 2019, Waterhaul has grown from a visionary project to an eminent sustainable brand. We’ve scaled our impact beyond our home shores and built a strong foundation upon our unwavering commitment to sustainability and purpose."
Harry Dennis & Gavin Parker, Founders
Our Partners
Through working with partners who share our value sand support our mission, we’re able to scale our positive impact.
FAQ's
We currently collect end-of-life fishing gear from across the UK coastline, through beach cleans, port and harbour collections and through partnerships with waste management organisations.
Here are some resources to learn more about the issue of ghost gear:
Ghost gear is a global problem that requires local level action.
Our ultimate ambition is to grow a NETwork of collection schemes around the world that tackle ghost gear whilst also benefiting local communities.
If your local area has a problem with ghost gear and you're motivated to act, please get in touch here.
To donate fishing gear to us directly, please get in touch with some photos of your haul so we can organise drop offs.
There is an abundance of materials used in fishing gear to suit various fishing methods. However, the dominant materials are polyolefins (polyethylene and polypropylene) and nylons.
We create a range of products utilising different polymers and sources. Currently we utilise two main polymers; nylon from gill, tangle and siene nets and polypropylene from ropes and trawl nets.
The former is regarded as the most lethal form of ghost gear, as the strong translucent filaments are almost invisible underwater and indiscriminately entangle any marine life that comes into contact with them.
Polypropylene, the latter, is one of the most abundant forms of plastic in existence and is found far more abundantly than nylon. As such, we think it's important to demonstrate that even this lower value plastic can be given value.
We also process HDPE, commonly found in fishing nets.
We'd love to hear from you and discuss how we could support each other.
Please Contact Us here.
Register to become a Waterhaul Ambassador here.
