Fish farm nets provide protection on the front lines in Ukraine
Nets retired by a Norwegian fish producer are being converted into camouflage and protective equipment on the front lines
A total of 45 tonnes of discarded nets will be transported in three stages from Nordland and further through Europe to Ukraine, writes Norwegian state braodcaster NRK.
There, the material is cut up and used to cover tanks, trenches and infrastructure – to shield against Russian drone attacks. The nets, which were originally designed to withstand harsh conditions at sea, have proven to function well as a physical barrier.
Elisabeth Kolflaath Semprini, head of the voluntary organisation Norwegian Volunteer Aid (NoVA), is behind the initiative. She tells NRK that the images from the first Russian attacks on Kyiv made such a strong impression that she had to act. The organisation has previously collected medical equipment and assisted with evacuations, and now it is fish farming nets that are in focus.
A legal grey area
Roman Zherebko, head of the Ukrainian Association in Bodø, says that the Norwegian nets are of high quality and density, and in some cases are the only thing that stops the drones before they reach their target.
The export of the nets is done in secret, as Norwegian legislation requires that such waste must be recycled domestically. According to the Norwegian Environment Agency, it is only legal to send the nets out if it can be documented that they will be reused and not considered waste – or if approval is obtained from both Norway, the recipient country and any transit countries. Without this, the export is considered illegal and can lead to a fine or police report.
Kolflaath Semprini, however, believes that there must be room for pragmatism in the face of war.
"We can't wait for bureaucratic processes. Then human lives will be lost," she tells NRK.
NRK has chosen to anonymise the fish farming company, as the action is in a legal grey area.
