The Ocean Cleanup

Technology

The removal of plastic debris on the open seas is still in its infancy. Some initiatives, such as Project Kaisei, have used ships with nets to catch plastics, primarily for research purposes. The Ocean Cleanup proposes a larger-scale, passive method of removing marine debris in or near the ocean gyres by means of 100-kilometre (62 mi) long networks of floating barriers, anchored to the ocean floor. These V-shaped barrier networks are designed to interact with natural ocean currents, funneling plastic debris towards a central point where the plastic can be extracted by a platform and stored for transportation and recycling. The Ocean Cleanup calls this barrier technology the Ocean Cleanup Array.

Mega Expedition

Through a series of oceanic expeditions, The Ocean Cleanup is researching the total mass and the distribution of plastic debris in the oceans, as well as technically and economically feasible ocean plastic recycling methods, technologies and equipment. In August 2015, it conducted its so-called Mega Expedition, in which a fleet of approximately 30 vessels crossed the Great Pacific garbage patch using manta trawls and carrying out aerial surveys to measure the concentration, spatial and size distribution of plastic there. Researchers aboard mothership R/V Ocean Starr reported sighting of much more large-sized plastic debris in the Great Pacific Ocean gyre than expected. According to The Ocean Cleanup website, this expedition was conducted in preparation for a large-scale cleanup of the Great Pacific garbage patch, which it intends to start in 2020.

Pilot program

In a series of pilot tests, successive scale model deployments of increasing sizes will be installed in increasingly challenging oceanic locations. The plans include a coastal pilot, originally to be started in 2016, using a 2,000-metre (6,600 ft) scale model cleanup array in the Tsushima Strait, off the Japanese coast. According to Slat, The Ocean Cleanup performed controlled environment tests in 2015. The deployment of the coastal pilot was postponed while a 100-metre segment went through a test in the North Sea, just off the coast of the Netherlands in the summer of 2016. After two months, the test was stopped, due to the failure of shackles connecting the boom to the mooring system. By the start of 2017, no date had been given for the expected redeployment of the North Sea test boom, or of the costal pilot off Japan.

Survey mobile application

In the later half of 2015, The Ocean Cleanup launched an iOS and Android application, the Visual Survey, which enables anyone on a boat on the ocean to contribute data. The app times a 30-minute observation session and during which observers log the debris they see. This replaces paper surveys and the data will be shared with other scientists in addition to assisting The Ocean Cleanup in making decisions.

Critics

Several criticisms and doubts about method, feasibility, efficiency and return on investment have been raised in the scientific community about the Ocean Cleanup Array.

Awards and recognition

The Ocean Cleanup and iSlat have won numerous distinctions. The United Nations Environment Programme awarded Slat with the Champion of the Earth in 2014, and he was previously recognized as one of the 20 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs Worldwide by Intel EYE50. In 2015, Harald V of Norway awarded Slat the maritime industry's Young Entrepreneur Award and The Ocean Cleanup Array was named as a London Design Museum Design of the Year. Also in 2015, the Ocean Cleanup Array won the INDEX: Award in 2015 and the 2015 Fast Company Innovation By Design Award in the category Social Good. Foreign Policy recognized Slat as one of the 100 Global Thinkers of 2015.