New Ocean Cleanup system tackles plastic pollution in rivers
- 4 years ago
ASIA — Nonprofit environmental organization the Ocean Cleanup is now tackling the problem of plastic pollution in oceans by collecting plastic waste directly from rivers before it gets to the oceans with its new system, the Interceptor, according to a news release from the organization.
The Interceptor is powered by solar energy and uses lithium-ion batteries, which enables it to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The Interceptor is anchored to the riverbed and uses a floating barrier that guides plastic waste from the river into the system's conveyor belt. Once plastic waste is onboard, it is automatically put into one of six dumpsters on a barge inside the system.
The system alerts local operators once all six dumpsters onboard are full. Local operators then send over a vessel to pick up the plastic waste.
The barge is taken back to shore with the plastic waste and emptied for recycling. The barge is then reattached to the Interceptor to collect more plastic debris.
Ocean Cleanup states in their news release that the system is capable of extracting 50,000 kilograms of trash a day. The organization claims that under optimal conditions, that number could increase to 100,000 kilograms of waste per day.
Ocean Cleanup has built four Interceptors till date. Two of its systems are already operating, one in Indonesia and one in Malaysia. The organization plans to roll out a third system in Vietnam and a fourth system in the Dominican Republic.
Ocean Cleanup has ambitious plans of tackling 1,000 of the world's most polluting rivers, which the organization says are responsible for 80 percent of plastic waste present in oceans, before the end of 2025.
The Interceptor is powered by solar energy and uses lithium-ion batteries, which enables it to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The Interceptor is anchored to the riverbed and uses a floating barrier that guides plastic waste from the river into the system's conveyor belt. Once plastic waste is onboard, it is automatically put into one of six dumpsters on a barge inside the system.
The system alerts local operators once all six dumpsters onboard are full. Local operators then send over a vessel to pick up the plastic waste.
The barge is taken back to shore with the plastic waste and emptied for recycling. The barge is then reattached to the Interceptor to collect more plastic debris.
Ocean Cleanup states in their news release that the system is capable of extracting 50,000 kilograms of trash a day. The organization claims that under optimal conditions, that number could increase to 100,000 kilograms of waste per day.
Ocean Cleanup has built four Interceptors till date. Two of its systems are already operating, one in Indonesia and one in Malaysia. The organization plans to roll out a third system in Vietnam and a fourth system in the Dominican Republic.
Ocean Cleanup has ambitious plans of tackling 1,000 of the world's most polluting rivers, which the organization says are responsible for 80 percent of plastic waste present in oceans, before the end of 2025.