A retired Fraserburgh fishing skipper is waging a battle against Scotland’s environmental regulator over the export of recycled fishing nets to Vietnam.
Willie Whyte, 75, runs Oor Bairns Charitable Trust, which raises money for good causes by recycling steel, scrap metal and old fishing nets.
The nets are donated by the Scottish pelagic fleet, including some collected by Mr Whyte’s son, Will, the current skipper of the family boat, Grateful.
Fishers helping fishers
Oor Bairns helped build fishing boats in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, following a devastating tsunami in 2004.
Support has also been given to fishers in Sumatra, Indonesia, as well as Thailand, India and Myanmar.
But the charity’s hopes of helping out fishers in Vietnam have encountered a hitch.
According to Oor Bairns, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) is concerned the rope may not be used for its its intended purpose – fishing nets.
Mr Whyte said: “We have the rope here all ready to go.
“Nam Duong Viet’s representative, Nguyen Tran Bien, has been to see it and is ready to make the purchase, but sadly the process is being held up by Sepa.
“Bien, as we know him, has already bought nets from Norway for the same thing.
“It’s hard to understand why there is such a long hold-up.”
But Sepa has insisted it will work with the charity to try to overcome any obstacles.
Jo Zwitserlood, head of materials at the agency, said: “As Scotland’s environment watchdog, Sepa firmly supports and facilities the reuse or recycling of resources from across a broad range of sectors, including our marine environment.
“We’ve worked closely with the trust in November and again last month to support their efforts, ensuring they were able to swiftly navigate UK legislative requirements designed to safeguard Scottish and international partners.
“Re-using fishing nets is a great initiative and we’ll actively provide any further assistance required.”
Green for go, or is it?
A Sepa officer visited Oor Bairns late last year and advised the rope could be exported to Vietnam under “green list” controls, which are the least stringent.
There is still some form-filling to be done to meet the requirements of waste shipment rules.
And the regulator has warned some parts of old fishing gear are not suitable for sending overseas, either due to their composition or a requirement for treatment prior to export.
The agency has urged all exporters to get in touch for advice.
Scottish pelagic fishers have supported the Oor Bairns initiative for many years.
The charity has donated cash to a wide range of projects.
These include the provision, with the help of Raigmore Hospital, in Inverness, of five scanners, a scan suite and two sonographers for the care of pregnant women in the Nakasangola community in Uganda.
Elsewhere in Uganda, Oor Bairns has also supported vulnerable families in Kawondwe Village, in Kalungi, and funded the provision of piped water to Nbiswera health centre.
It is currently funding the construction of a farm in Nakasangola.
