April 28, 2013 — More than 75 fishermen from Seabrook to Portsmouth and about a dozen community volunteers on Saturday converged on the beaches of Rye and Hampton to clean up nearly 35 tons of lobster traps and fishing gear.
"We started at low tide about 7:30 (Saturday morning)," said Eric Anderson, president of the New Hampshire Commercial Fishermen's Association. "The cleanup went along quickly with the nice weather. There was a lot more debris this year."
The cleanup, now in it's 20th year, usually nets about 10 tons of traps and gear.
This year's cleanup effort is a partnership between the fishermen's association, N.H. Fish and Game Department, the N.H. Division of Ports and Harbors, Hampton Public Works Department and the Fishing for Energy Partnership, which funded a UNH Sea Grant for large equipment and dumpsters at the cleanup.
"It's our responsibility as fishermen to clean up after the winter," Anderson said.
The event took place at the state marinas at Rye Harbor and Hampton Harbor. Following the cleanup, the fishermen and volunteers had a cookout at the Rye location.
Read the full strory at the Portsmouth Herald