Cleaning beaches at the most remote and vulnerable nature, we want to do it as gently, environmentally friendly, and sustainably as possible.
Through constantly developing our methodology and now with the expedition vessel Qilak, we have managed to reduce our emissions by up to 90%.
The coast of Finnmark is characterized by large distances, remote nature, and inaccessible areas. If one were to carry out beach cleaning based on crew members living on land and in a harbor, it would take several hours of driving our workboats per day to get the crew into the terrain.
In The Same Boat, now in its sixth season of professional beach cleaning in Finnmark, has upgraded its methodology and acquired the expedition vessel Qilak.
Qilak is a 20-meter aluminum expedition sailboat built to operate “off grid” for long periods in Arctic regions. It has 15 berths and facilities like a small floating hotel.
Qilak allows us to anchor near the areas being cleaned for many weeks without going to port. This saves several hours of driving daily, reduces emissions, and frees up more cleaning time, explains skipper and founder of In The Same Boat Rolf-Ørjan Høgset.
– In Laksefjorden, where we are currently located, we would have to travel quite a distance to refuel at a dock, likely using more than 300 liters of fuel per day just to reach a fueling station. Now, we refuel the workboat from the large tanks on Qilak, using only a few liters per day to get around the beaches in the fjord.
In addition to large fuel tanks, Qilak has enough water and other necessary facilities so that the crew can work for several months without visiting a port. Read more about Qilak HERE.
– Practically, we are unlikely to stay here in Laksefjorden for more than three weeks before we are finished, but it is good to know that we have a vessel that can stay out for a long time and handle some weather. This is a tremendous upgrade that will allow us to double the efficiency of our efforts in Finnmark.
In The Same Boat’s mission in Finnmark is part of the Rydd i Tide program, funded by Handelens Miljøfond.
– We appreciate that Handelens Miljøfond has trusted us over time, allowing us to build experience, technology, and our fleet of specially modified vessels for beach cleaning. This development is only possible with long-term financial stability.
In close cooperation with Salt Lofoten, which administers Rydd i Tide on behalf of Handelens Miljøfond, continuous work is being done on developing the methodology. The goal, also anchored with Handelens Miljøfond, is to clean as much as possible per available funding – and ultimately, the entire coastline of Norway will be cleaned.
– It was only a few years ago that professional beach cleaning began to develop in Norway, and it has been a steep learning curve with many challenges. – Today, we are part of the world’s largest clean-up action, collaborating with the other participants in the Rydd i Tide program, and even though we have come a long way, we will continue to focus on improving and finding optimal solutions both for cleaning beaches and preventing new littering from entering the ocean in the first place.