This open access book reflects aims of the Blue Circular Economy (BCE) project which focused
on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) aiming to create value using circular economy
concepts related to products and services within fishing gear recycling in the Northern
Periphery and Arctic (NPA) area. Cluster establishment and operation were carried out in
collaboration with academia industry and government agencies following a triple-helix
approach. Discarded fishing gear constitutes a large part of marine plastics. Preventing future
discharge of fishing gear into the ocean is a vital step in combating plastic pollution.
Circular economy is one of the tools in the European Green deal targeting waste minimisation.
Closing the loop for waste fishing nets by transferring them to a resource could be a solution
for preventing discharge at sea: exploring this opportunity is at the core of this book.
