by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 3:25 PM ET, Mon July 16, 2018
Fishing nets that have been lost, abandoned or discarded at sea are known as ghost nets and every year they're responsible for killing millions of marine animals.
Around 640,000 tons of ghost gear ends up in the ocean annually, accounting for about 10 percent of the world's marine debris.
Six Senses Laamu has announced plans to officially partner with a UK-based non-profit focused on addressing this serious problem in an effort to save sea turtles.
The Olive Ridley Project's mission is to clean up, rescue, reuse and educate the world about ghost nets. Its name comes from the Olive Ridley sea turtle, a breed rarely seen in Maldives. Most encounters, unfortunately, occur when the turtles are trapped in discarded ghost nets drifting into the country's waters by ocean currents.
The non-profit works to remove ghost nets and other marine debris from the sea, rescuing and rehabilitating injured sea turtles and raising awareness about the dangers of ocean pollution to the livelihood of sea turtles. Trapped turtles frequently suffer from malnutrition, exhaustion, buoyancy issues and deep lacerations around the neck and flippers.
In making its partnership with the non-profit official, Six Senses Laamu said it is committed to keeping turtles in the atoll of Laamu safe and protected.
The hotel had been working with the Olive Ridley Project since 2016 and during that time Six Senses Laamu's marine biologists contributed photo IDs of turtles from Laamu Atoll, while simultaneously building their own database of about 350 individuals.
The aim of the new partnership is to study the turtles' population and reef residency patterns in order to inform significant conservation objectives.
Six Senses Laamu already contributes data on the ghost nets found, which the Olive Ridley Project uses to determine the origin of the nets, educate people regarding the dangers of ghost nets and the importance of preventing them from ending up in the ocean.
While removing ghost gear from the ocean and safely disposing of it is important, it is only a short-term solution. Finding long-term solutions requires such data collection in order to provide researchers with enough information to figure out where the ghost gear originates.
"We are excited to partner with Six Senses Laamu as we continue our charitable aims of rescuing sea turtles, combating plastic pollution and raising awareness," Olive Ridley Project Founder and CEO Martin Stelfox, said in a statement.
Six Senses Laamu is located on Olhuveli Island in Laamu Atoll, a nesting beach for Green Turtles. In 2017, the resort hosted eight turtle nests and welcomed more than 500 hatchlings into the world.
Ultimately, one of the main objectives of the partnership with the Olive Ridley Project is to create a sanctuary for turtles in Laamu Atoll. In addition, expanded research regarding turtle feeding in seagrass habitats and nesting in beach habitats on Olhuveli and surrounding islands will be part of the new partnership.
A sea turtle biologist, Nina Rothe, will also be based at the resort to facilitate guest interaction with Six Senses' resident Green and Hawksbill turtles, both of which are on the endangered species list. There will even be kid's activities and evening presentations at the resort designed to inform guests about sea turtle biology, the critical role they play in coral reef ecosystems and the threats they face.
"We are thrilled to formalize the already beneficial relationship we have with Olive Ridley Project and welcome Nina to the team," General Manager Marteyne van Well of Six Senses Laamu said in a statement. "The great work in sea turtle conservation and plastic pollution they do across the Maldives will be central to achieving our conservation objectives in the Laamu Atoll."
Six Senses Laamu is the only resort in the Laamu Atoll, deep in the Indian Ocean, surrounded by a coral house reef.
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