The Town Of North Hempstead: A 2016 EPA Environmental Champion

The Fishing Line Receptacle Initiative

Message from the Supervisor:

Greetings,

As Supervisor for the Town of North Hempstead I would like to thank for visiting this page to learn more about how your municipality might reduce plastic trash in your waters with a simple and economical fishing line receptacle program.

The Town of North Hempstead’s government has a rich and proud history of staunchly protecting the environment. Each year our Bay Constables rescue sea birds and other marine life that have become entangled in discarded monofilament fishing line. In 2015, the Town’s Chief Bay Constable Mal Nathan visited Florida and noticed some receptacles on the fishing piers for use by fisherman to dispose of their used and tangled monofilament fishing line. Made simply of PVC piping and mounted vertically to poles, Nathan brought the idea back North Hempstead and working in conjunction with the Town’s Office of Sustainability, he built about a dozen receptacles and we installed them at several waterside locations. The receptacles and educational signage are all designed and made using Town resources and staff and are emptied as needed. Because the program is still new, we are saving all the collected fishing line to see how much we accumulate over a year’s time. After that milestone, we will be sending all the line to Berkley Fishing, a company in Iowa that has a program to turn the monofilament into other products or into fish habitat structures (http://www.berkley-fishing.com/Berkley-recycling.html). We will mail them what we collect annually.

The Town’s Communications Department has also worked with the Town’s Bay Constable to create an online instructional video to make these cost effective receptacles which we make available for you on this page. You’ll also find templates to make your own stickers and signs. I hope you find all of this information helpful and if you have any questions for us, please email press@northhempsteadny.gov or call 516-869-6311.

Warm Regards and Happy Fishing,



Supervisor Judi Bosworth

Video: Watch How to Make Your Own Fishing Line Receptacle

Templates for Signs

• Fishing Line Sign
• Fishing Line Sticker - No Hands
• Fishing Line Sticker - Place Lines Here
• Fishing Line Sticker - Description
  
  

News About the Town's Fishing Line Program

• Town of North Hempstead Named an Environmental Champion by the EPA
• Town Now Providing Safe Disposal Receptacles for Monofilament Fishing Line
• North Hempstead tackles threat from monofilament fishing line
  
  

Photo Gallery