“The majority of marina pontoons in the UK rely on EPS foam blocks encapsulated in concrete for buoyancy, a low-cost solution which, in the long term, has unfortunately proven to be environmentally detrimental. Over time, the concrete skins inevitably crack and fall away, exposing the foam and releasing plastic balls into the ocean. We have a Seabin in our marina, and polystyrene with concrete attached is a very common waste product recovered, likely to have been released from both abandoned and operational pontoons in our harbour area.

This legacy liability is compounded by the disposal costs for old concrete foam floats, which are classed as hazardous waste in the UK. We recently removed three failing floats from a finger pontoon, which were visibly releasing EPS balls. The disposal cost was £500 per float, which is more than the cost of a new replacement concrete foam float. Whilst we have chosen to dispose of floats responsibly, sadly, some do not, and it is not uncommon to see old floats stacked at the top of a boatyard or to find people selling them off cheaply. These old and unserviceable floats invariably end up beached and abandoned up a creek somewhere, and the local council or harbour authority then has to bear the cost of collection and disposal.

Given all this, Falmouth Harbour has made the conscious decision to move away from EPS foam pontoons in all our operations. ReefFloat is the first company to offer a plastic-free alternative with zero-cost end-of-life disposal, as it can be crushed and used as hardcore or an equivalent. We have been keen to support them by purchasing a prototype float. The Reef Float team used a ballasted ScaffFloat to remove the old, damaged concrete float and then install the new float under the finger pontoon. This was all done in a few hours, and it is this ‘in situ’ replacement package that is attractive to us. It gives us the option to instigate a rolling programme of float replacement, spreading the cost over years, without needing to remove pontoons from the water, which saves on associated costs and minimises loss of revenue and disruption to our valued berth holders ”

Miles Carden, CEO, Falmouth Harbour, Cornwall