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GAC UK is supporting Seavive, a unique experiment in seagrass restoration which is now being trialed within Falmouth Harbour.
Seagrass meadows are vital nurseries for marine life, as well as being major contributors to carbon capture - more effective than tropical rainforests. A study by University College London estimates at least 44% of the UK's seagrass has been lost since 1936.
To reverse that decline, Bournemouth University student Alex Croasdell has designed and modified a “Seavive Pod” to successfully rot down seagrass seedpods to nurture the release of their seeds to replenish and renew seagrass beds. The latest design, 3D printed using recycled plastic, is now holding harvested seedpods suspended below a pontoon in Falmouth Harbour.
Commitment to sustainability
The initiative is backed by a partnership that includes GAC UK, Falmouth Harbour, and marine restoration charity Our Only World. The cost of the Seavive recycled plastic pod was shared by GAC UK and Our Only World.
David Thorburn, GAC UK Agency Operations Manager, says: “We’ve recently opened our latest ship agency branch in Falmouth and feel it's vital to give back to the local community. Our support of the seagrass restoration project reflects both GAC UK and GAC Group’s commitment to sustainability. Both strategies are built on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, one of which is Life Below Water.”
"We’ve recently opened our latest ship agency branch in Falmouth and feel it's vital to give back to the local community. Our support of the seagrass restoration project reflects both GAC UK and GAC Group’s commitment to sustainability. Both strategies are built on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, one of which is Life Below Water."
David Thorburn, GAC UK Agency Operations Manager
Educational
The prototype Seavive pod will be retrieved from the pontoon in November and the released seeds used for education. School pupils will take the seeds, mix them with sand and place them in hessian bags which they will hand to volunteer divers and snorkelers. They in turn will plant them on patches of seabed scoured when moorings were removed by Falmouth Harbour in 2021. The seeds will be monitored for signs of germination in spring 2023 with hopes high that this activity will help quicken the regeneration of the scour patches.
Learn more about the regeneration project here.
Photo courtesy of Lewis Jefferies
The pod is 370mm long x 240mm wide. Photo courtesy of Niall Jones.
Photo courtesy of Falmouth Harbour.
Photo courtesy of Falmouth Harbour.
