Former Fisherman Pulls 15,000 Pounds from Canadian Harbor

Sean Bath used to toss his trash overboard while hunting sea urchins in Canadian waters. Now he spends his days diving to the ocean floor, hauling up abandoned fishing nets, car tires, and plastic waste that suffocates marine life.

The transformation began in 2018 when Bath started the Clean Harbors Initiative in Newfoundland. His first dive in Bay Roberts harbor brought up 15,000 pounds of debris, opening his eyes to the scale of ocean pollution he'd once contributed to.

Ghost gear, the term for lost or abandoned fishing equipment, kills millions of sea creatures annually. Nets and lines trap fish, turtles, and marine mammals underwater, turning fishing tools into invisible death traps that continue destroying ecosystems for decades.

For years, Bath struggled to fund his diving missions. He scraped together donations while battling constant financial stress, wondering if each cleanup expedition might be his last.

Everything changed in spring 2021 when the documentary Hell or Clean Water premiered at Toronto's Hot Docs festival. The film followed Bath for a year, showing audiences the grueling work of underwater cleanup and the urgent need for ocean restoration.

The Ripple Effect

Personal donations flooded in after the documentary's release. Bath finally had enough funding to hire another boat and diver, transforming his one-man mission into a sustainable operation.

The initiative recently expanded beyond diving. When poor visibility made underwater work unsafe at Long Harbor, Bath's team pivoted to beach cleanups at St. Croix, collecting three boatloads of plastic in just days.

Beach cleaning offers advantages diving can't match. The work requires no fuel, costs less, and allows volunteers to participate safely, making ocean cleanup accessible to entire communities.

From polluter to protector, Bath proves redemption stories can create real environmental impact.