New Ocean Cleanup system pulls 46,000 kg of plastic from the Pacific Ocean in one month
The Dutch offshore restoration project Ocean Cleanup recently conducted a major expedition to test their new technology. The non-profit organization announced last week that it caught over 45 tonnes of plastic during the trip, using their new plastic extraction system called System 03.
Ocean Cleanup is a project launched by Dutch inventor Boyan Slat. The system consists of a floating wall in the shape of a U. Ships sail around this wall to scoop out the plastic and bring it to the mainland.
By the end of August, they deployed System 03 for the first time. On Friday, they announced on social media that this system completed its first trip to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, retrieving over 45 tons of plastic. Throughout the expedition, they executed five plastic extractions, with a single record load amounting to 18 tons.
Five plastic extractions, testing our new marine animal safety hatch, plastic hotspot hunting - System 03's maiden voyage is complete, and the ocean is ≈46,000 kg (≈101,412 lbs) cleaner. Here’s how Josh did it: https://t.co/1MmCyCDQJ0. pic.twitter.com/WhmIkshxuJ
— The Ocean Cleanup (@TheOceanCleanup) October 6, 2023
This expedition provided an opportunity to test various upgrades. While System 02 had three-meter-deep wings, System 03 reaches four meters deep, enabling a deeper skim. The retention zone was expanded, and the extraction area can now hold a larger volume of plastic. Additional cameras were also installed to closely monitor the retention zone's interior.
A new plastic hotspot hunting was tried to maximise plastic encounters and catch more efficiently. They also used a new marine animal safety hatch to make sure to only catch plastic. Whenever marine animals swim into the retention zone and are at risk of being trapped, the system can open to guide the animals safely back to the sea.
"The whole trip went relatively smoothly," said mechanical engineer Fedde Poppenk in a video posted on YouTube. "When you introduce new things, you can always expect some teething problems, but we didn't lose too much time on those. It went well," he added.
One year ago, we showed you our vision for System 03.
— The Ocean Cleanup (@TheOceanCleanup) October 4, 2023
Now, with the first trip successfully completed, see how it looks in reality: pic.twitter.com/YU76gerVbp
There are an estimated 1,800 billion pieces of garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean, weighing a combined 80 million kilograms. The plastic soup known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is about three times the size of France.
