An Ontario teen is making waves by turning old fishing gear into new treasures. Since last year, Natalie, 15, has been taking lost or thrown — away fishing nets and rope and transforming them into bracelets, rope art, mats, baskets and necklaces.

Last year, Natalie was working on an assignment for her science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) class. As part of the assignment, she learned about “ghost nets”, which are fishing nets that have been left or lost in the ocean by people who fish.

“They have huge effects on our environment. They can kill coral reefs and many animals,” said Natalie. “46 percent of the Pacific garbage is ghost gear.” The Great Pacific Garbage is a huge collection of trash floating in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and California.

Natalie told her mom she wanted to do something to help. She got in touch with a handful of charities, including the Sea Protection Society and Coastal Action.

After getting some shipments of ghost nets and rope from those organizations, Natalie, with the help of her family, started turning the discarded gear into new artworks. “We've made bracelets, rope art, mats, baskets, and we've made necklaces, which also use beach glass in them,” she said. Natalie then started selling the artworks online, the crafty buying and selling website.

She donated all her profits-minus a small sum of change to cover supplies — to the charities that donated fishing supplies to her. She's also been donating all the income from her non-profit business, called Nautical Waters, to charity. Natalie said she hoped to continue her passion for ocean life, with plans to study marine biology in university.

8£®How did Natalie help with ghost nets?

A£®By turning them into artworks. B£®By asking support from her mother.

C£®By collecting money from charities. D£®By selling ghost nets at a good price.

9£®What made Natalie decide to do something with ghost nets?

A£®To collect supplies for the artworks. B£®To prepare for her study in university.

C£®To protect coral reefs and marine animals. D£®To complete an assignment for her STEM class.

10£®What docs the underlined word “discarded" in Paragraph 5 refer to?

A£®Polluted. B£®Rare. C£®Waste. D£®Discovered.

11£®What is the best title for the text.

A£®Ghost Nets Ready for Sale B£®Charities Make a Big Difference

C£®Natalie's Passion for Ocean Treasures D£®Teen Turns Old Fishing Nets into Artworks