Maine Eco Magnet Fishers beneficial to the environment

By Matt Pascarella

Maine Eco Magnet Fishers gather as a group during a recent
river cleanup. From left are Damion Dobson, Roy Albert,
Cameron Fox, Colt Busch, Jon Meserve and Debbie Greer.
PHOTO BY CHRIS MAGOON  

Colt Busch and Cameron Fox started the group Maine Eco Magnet Fishers in 2019 with the goal of coming together to clean up rivers and lakes to make a difference within their community.

This May, Busch and fellow magnet fisher Nick Wallace will attend the first Magnets and Healthy Minds event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to benefit the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Magnet fishing uses large and powerful magnets dragged across the bottom of a river or lake to pull up any items that might be down there.

The basic equipment is grappling hooks and powerful magnets. There are multiple magnet fishing kits to suit a variety of needs and ages.

Both Busch and Fox have children and want to help clean up the waterways for their children, as well as other people’s.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and May 21 is National River Cleanup Day. Magnets and Healthy Minds will feature magnet fishers of all ages with all proceeds going to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Magnets and Healthy Minds Organizer and Wisconsin resident Clayton Matulle and his wife Jen began magnet fishing about two and a half years ago. They both struggle with mental health issues and use magnet fishing as a form of therapy.

"Our goal this year is to bring magnet fishers together,” said Matulle.

He wants them to know that they are not alone, and it is ok to have mental health issues.

Wallace said both he and his wife suffer from mental illness. He is looking forward to attending the Magnets and Healthy Minds event to meet more people interested in the sport while spreading awareness about mental health.

“I just love giving back and helping people out,” said Wallace. “It’s satisfying to help the environment.”

Before Busch and Fox started Maine Eco Magnet Fishers, they saw magnet fishing on a YouTube channel and thought it would be fun to try. Busch and Fox began magnet fishing as a hobby off Black Bridge in Westbrook on the Presumpscot River.

“We really enjoyed it first as a hobby,” said Fox. “Then as we began to pull out more and more metals ... people were really happy and intrigued [with] what we were doing - not only that but helping the environment.”

Busch connected with another magnet fisher, Debbie Greer, through Facebook who helped them establish Maine Eco Magnet Fishers. She posted on a community page and from there things just took off. Maine Eco Magnet Fishers has grown since it initially began three years ago.

“As the excitement grew of how much we worked at pulling things out of ‘the river that keeps on giving,’ we were working on getting the word out for a family fun hobby,” said Greer.

Greer would like the group to get the word out and get more people involved as a community that puts in the effort to clean up Maine’s waterways.

Busch said a typical expedition is a big group that tries to clean up as much as possible while having fun at the same time. There’s usually a crowd to see what’s going on and Busch is both recognized and consistently thanked.

For Busch, being thanked for magnet fishing is the best feeling in the world. He wants people to enjoy the waters.

“We love doing it; we love making the water better,” said Busch. <