Bristol gets punt made of Plaswood for public plastic fishing trips

On 13 July, the city of Bristol, in the UK, gained a new weapon in the battle against the plastic debris polluting its waterways. A 12-seater punt made from 99% recycled plastic that will be permanently based in Bristol Harbour, has been donated to education consultants Sustainable Hive. Funded equally by Bunzl and Danone UK & Ireland, and launched by environmental charity Hubbub, the new ‘Seacycler’ will be used to take local people out on ‘plastic fishing’ trips, to raise awareness among the public and to educate local schoolchildren and businesses about the impact of litter on the environment and the value of recycling plastic.

“Seacycler will not only provide young people in Bristol with the opportunity to learn about some of the challenges we face, but also give them the opportunity to play their part and help keep our waterways clean,” explained James Pitcher, Head of Sustainability at Bunzl plc. “That’s why we’re delighted to be supporting this engaging initiative.”

Seacycler is made from single-use plastic and is only the sixth of its kind in the world. The craftsman tasked with building the boat is expert boat-builder Mark Edwards MBE, who also built the Queen’s barge ‘Gloriana’.  The design is based on a traditional punt, but is made from Plaswood, an alternative to wood made entirely from recycled plastic, some of which was repurposed from packaging recycled by employees at Danone’s UK offices. The vessel is powered by a rechargeable electric motor. 

Richard Hall, VP of General Secretary, Danone UK and Ireland said the company had worked with Hubbub on many other initiatives. “This boat holds a special place for us, as our colleagues recycled some of the packaging from our offices to help create it. The boat offers a fun and hands-on opportunity to help engage people with the power of the circular economy, the importance of recycling and ensuring no plastic ends up as waste in nature.”

Following its launch, Seacycler will be moored at Young Bristol pontoon where plastic fishing trips will set off from. With each trip, the boat will help remove more plastic debris from Bristol Harbour, which will then be recycled, potentially to build other vessels. 

The young people in Bristol are eager to make a difference to the litter in our waterways; they want to lead by example, be proactive and highlight the problem to others, according to Clare Marshall, Director at Sustainable Hive. To which Gavin Ellis, Co-founder and Director of Hubbub added that by involving local schools and businesses in a fun and engaging way, the plastic fishing trips on Seacycler will not only help clean-up the harbour and reduce the impact of litter on wildlife, but ‘also demonstrates that plastic has a value and can be turned into something useful’.

The first punt made from recycled plastic, the Poly-Mer, was launched in London in 2017 and so far has taken 2,700 people plastic fishing who have collected 2,819 plastic bottles from the Docklands. 

In 2019, Hubbub launched the plastic fishing tour which included a week-long visit to Bristol. 1,649 people went Plastic Fishing over the course of the year and 90% of volunteers pledged not to use a plastic bottle for a month after their experience.