Surfrider Foundation’s Kauaʻi Chapter said it has removed 9,000 pounds of marine debris from remote coastlines south of Moloaʻa through a series of net patrol missions.
As part of its seventh annual “Operation Airlift,” a helicopter assisted a team of volunteers in removing abandoned fishing nets and plastics from Kauaʻi’s northeast shoreline between May and July 2025.
The net patrol missions involved volunteers hauling 36 “super sacks” of marine debris, averaging around 250 pounds each.
With the help of Jack Harter Helicopters and the Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund, the “super sacks” were airlifted and transported to a private property on Saturday. The volunteers will later take the sacks to Surfrider Kauaʻi’s Marine Debris Baseyard in Kapaʻa for processing.
Surfrider said that ghost nets (lost, abandoned, or discarded fishing nets) and plastics made up roughly 60% of the debris. Both pose a serious threat to marine ecosystems.
According to the organization, hundreds of thousands of pounds of ghost nets wash up on Kauaʻi’s shores every year. Most originate from commercial fishing operations and arrive as tangled bundles of rope and netting weighing over 1,000 pounds.
Ghost nets can live in the ocean for decades, often entangling marine animals and causing injury, suffocation, or starvation.
In 2007, Surfrider Kauaʻi launched its Net Patrol Program in response to the growing crisis of ghost nets.
Teams of volunteers often hike into remote stretches of coast, cutting through heavy netting and carrying debris across difficult and rocky terrain to remove the nets.
“This is a team accomplishment that wouldn’t be possible without our core Net Patrol volunteers,” said Scott McCubbins, Surfrider Kauaʻi treasurer and co-coordinator of beach cleanup and net patrol, in a news release. “Every week they show up, rain or shine, to protect our ocean and wildlife. But we also need to address the root cause — about 85% of these nets and other fishing-related plastics come from the commercial fishing industry. There are already rules for proper disposal, and it’s critical that we enforce them.”
To report nets or other marine debris, or to join a Net Patrol, call the Surfrider Kauaʻi Net Patrol Hotline at 808-635-2593.
