From Heavy Lifting to Carrying the Story Forward

In many of our underwater clean-up missions, some of the most important tools are not the most visible ones. When volunteer divers remove ghost nets, ropes, barrels, pipes, or other heavy marine litter from the seabed, they often rely on liftbags: strong inflatable bags that help bring heavy objects safely back to the surface. They do the heavy lifting, quite literally.

Divers lifting ghost nets using liftbags

Over the years, these liftbags have played an essential role in Healthy Seas and Ghost Diving missions, especially during our ghost farm clean-ups. Abandoned fish farms can leave behind large amounts of material underwater, from nets and ropes to pipes, barrels, and even larger structures. In some cases, the recovery work has involved extremely heavy lifting, including the removal of a sunken boat.

But after many missions, even the strongest tools reach the end of their working life. Some liftbags become too worn, damaged, or broken to be safely used underwater again. The material, however, is still incredibly durable.

So we asked ourselves: could this material have a second life?

Thanks to Ghost Diving and its volunteer divers, Healthy Seas received old and heavily used liftbags that were ready to be disposed of.  Instead of letting them become waste, we created a simple design that would make the most of the material. Each liftbag can be transformed into two new bags, giving the material a new purpose while keeping its story alive.

Cutting the old liftbags for the new design

The result is a strong, slightly stiff bag with a bold orange colour, a splash-resistant surface, and a past life that is impossible to ignore.

Each bag has been cleaned and ironed, but we have not erased its history. You may still find small marks, creases, or signs of its previous life at sea. No two bags are exactly the same. And that is exactly the point.

These bags were once used to lift marine litter from the seabed. Now, they help carry the story of those missions forward. They are branded with Healthy Seas and include credit to Ghost Diving, whose volunteer divers not only use these tools in the field but also donated the old liftbags that made this project possible.

Today, these bags are offered as a gift to people who support Healthy Seas with a donation. By choosing one, you are not only receiving a unique upcycled item, you are helping fund new clean-ups, and education programmes to protect our seas.

A liftbag that once helped remove waste from the ocean can now help make the next mission possible.

Healthy Seas bag from liftbags