Volunteers in Weymouth have assisted Poole Harbour and District Fisherman's Association in recycling its fishing nets.

The group, the Weymouth and Portland Marine Litter Project, has worked for a year recycling 'end of life' fishing nets and plastic items in the west of the county.

The scheme, which commenced in May, has recycled close to a tonne of net, whelk pots, rope, and other plastics from Poole.

With sponsorship from Rockfish, a sustainable fish restaurant with branches in Weymouth and Poole, they can now recycle countywide.

According to the group, fishermen discard hundreds of metres of net every season, usually burned, sent to landfills, or illegally dumped.

The scheme focuses on the fishing industry's sustainability in Dorset, eliminating the need to dump nets illegally.

The group provided a recycling bin for nets and ropes on Poole fisherman's dock, which volunteers from Weymouth collect regularly.

The net is sorted in Weymouth, and contamination is removed, then sent to Net Regeneration at Exeter City Council.

The net, along with others from the South West, is baled and changed into a nylon thread known as 'econyl' to make fabric, reducing the reliance on natural resources.