Five tons of trash were collected in Furufjörður fjord in Hornstrandir, the West Fjords, during a cleaning effort last weekend. This was the third time volunteers traveled to the Horstrandir region to collect trash, and so far, a total of 16 tons have been collected.
Volunteers collected the litter in the fjord, which is located within the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve. Gauti Geirsson, who organized the effort, told RÚV that some of the trash was not surprising, such as parts of nets from fishing boats, “but other things were quite abnormal, such as all the disposable plastic cups, plastic containers and such, and that’s just what we need to bring awareness to with this effort― plastic and waste in general.”
The Icelandic Coast Guard takes part in the project and transports the trash to Ísafjörður. Most of it is plastic.
Jón Smári Jónsson, who oversees the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, points out that because plastic gradually breaks down into smaller components, it ends up in the biosphere, and that’s a reason for concern.
