Projects Carried Out in 2025
Our results for 2025
2025 was a productive and eventful year for Abyss Cleanup. Ghost net recovery
activities formed the core of our commitments, thanks to our continued collaboration
between divers, technicians, researchers, and local authorities. In Terrasini,
Syracuse, and Vulcano, we intervened on large nets, in some cases recovering up to
five hundred kilograms of material from challenging depths, while also freeing
several fish that had become trapped. In other situations, following the guidance of
the National Research Council, we responsibly chose not to remove certain nets that
had become integrated into the seabed, so as not to compromise ecosystems that
have developed over time.
The SEF project, “Untangling the Sea”, continued with determination, despite
difficulties related to bad weather and the complexity of operations at sea. Data
collection proved more challenging than expected, particularly due to the absence in
Italy of public databases dedicated to ghost nets. For this reason, the mapping work
carried out in 2025 represents an important contribution to better understanding the
scale of the phenomenon and planning more effective interventions in the future. The
final event of the SEF project, “Creating Networks to Free the Sea”, was held in
Palermo on the twenty-fifth of November 2025 at the Ecomuseum Mare Memoria
Viva, where Abyss Cleanup participated as a partner.
Alongside operational activities, we invested in awareness raising and education.
The educational video game, “Abyss Cleanup – Adventure”, was developed in
collaboration with the Lightwings association and funded through a TOOC grant for
the digitalisation of the third sector. The game will be available by the end of 2026,
and aims to introduce children and young people to the marine world in an engaging
and accessible way.
The year 2025 was also a period of broader organisational growth. We have begun
planning for the acquisition of more vessels suitable for research with remotely
operated vehicles, and are evaluating new funding opportunities to obtain
increasingly advanced technological tools. This will allow us to strengthen our
operational and scientific capabilities going forward.
Projects Carried Out in 2024
Our results for 2024
The year 2024 has been an extraordinary one for our environmental awareness and conservation projects. The documentary ABYSS CLEANUP – THE FILM moved audiences at prestigious film festivals and reached schools and cinemas across Italy, with unforgettable stops from Rome to Milan, Turin, Bologna and beyond. On the operational front in Terrasini, we have removed nearly 800 kilograms of waste from the seabed and launched significant analyses on microplastics in collaboration with La Sapienza University in Rome. We have supported explorers and researchers, such as Giovanni Chimienti, in his missions to the Maldives for the protection of black coral, as well as Mariarita Caracciolo, in her project on whale sharks. We have strengthened our network through conferences and collaborations in Piedmont and with partners such as SEF and ICJAM. Finally, we have begun the development of the video game ABYSS CLEANUP, marking an important step towards digital innovation in environmental education. It is a year of great achievements that inspires us to do even more going forward.
Projects Carried Out in 2023
2023 was a year of new partnerships and large projects.
Abyss Cleanup has consolidated relations with Sea Shepherd Italy, a historic non-profit organization, with the aim of actively protecting marine creatures. Thanks to the use of the M/Y Cornad vessel, we have carried out a difficult ROV exploration campaign in the Strait of Messina to document and map waste at depths of up to -600m, led by Dr. Martina Pierdomenico of the CRN. Footage from filming carried out from our team will be part of the documentary “Abyss Cleanup – the Film” by Igor D’India (produced by PopCult docs) to be released in 2024.
We have also collaborated in the creation of the documentary “The White in the Blue” by marine biologist and National Geographic explorer Giovanni Chimienti, financed by the National Geographic Society with support from Prada’s SEA BEYOND project and IOC UNESCO. The documentary was presented on the 18th of July in Marettimo, and tells the story of the discovery of an immense population of black coral in the waters of Marettimo.
Abyss Cleanup has been a network partner of various environmental associations. Thanks to our network, clean-up operations have been carried out in Liguria between Worldrise and Reef Alert Network as well as Sea Shepherd with Reef Alert Network.
The sampling operations of sea water in search of microplastics continue for Prof. Laura Santarelli, of the Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials and Environment of La Sapienza University.
Projects Carried out in 2022
Operation in Terrasini
We supported the community of Terrasini, a town in the province of Palermo, by removing waste from the port with local associations, the Municipality of Terrasini and the CPT of Terrasini. The intervention was supported by our sponsor Arrigoni S.p.a. Sampling operations of sea water in the Ligurian Sea have begun in search of microplastics for Prof. Laura Santarelli, of the Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials and Environment of La Sapienza University. We have begun several collaborations with diving centers in Sicily and Liguria to continue our cleanup and seabed mapping operations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WB-7tTUPHps
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