Big problems call for equally big solutions. That maxim will beput into practice this weekendwhen amultimillion dollar project called The Ocean Cleanuplaunches a giant floating vessel aimed at removing the largest accumulation of plastic in the world from a stretch of ocean referred to as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
The brainchild of 24-year-old Dutch inventor Boyan Slat, The Ocean Cleanup is a foundation that develops technology for extracting plastic pollution from our oceans. It has been working toward this goal for several years now, but Saturday marks the day the initiative begins in earnest. That’s when the organization will unleash its giant 2,000 foot, U-shaped passive collection system, intended to gather up garbage consuming around 600,000 square miles of ocean between California and Hawaii.
Using just this one trash collector, the goal is to extract around 50 tons of plastic from the ocean each year. This will then be removed from the water, and shipped off for recycling. Eventually, the goal is to have an entire fleet of similar vessels, capable of pulling a combined 14,000 tons of plastic from the oceans every year.
To mark the launch of the first trash-collecting leviathan being towed towed through the San Francisco Bay, underneath the Golden Gate Bridge on its way to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the organization is hosting a press conference on Pier 41. The event isbeing livestreamedat 11 a.m. PT on Saturday for anyone interested in viewing the start of what should be a transformative mission.
Will it work as planned? We’ll have to wait and see. One thing that’s for sure, though, is that there’s no shortage of ambition on display here. If that can be translated into results, then the world’s oceans are about to become a much cleaner, less trash-filled place.
