The Ocean Cleanup, a project designed to rid the oceans of plastic, has announced it will begin extracting waste from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch within the next 12 months.
It also announced that parts of its first clean-up system are already in production, and thanks to an improved and more efficient design, it is expected that half of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch could be cleared in just five years.
The design consists of a number of U-shaped floating screens, which the current will channel the waste into, making it easy to collect.
The alternative clean-up method is using a series of vessels collecting plastic with nets, which could take thousands of years and billions of dollars.
The original design featured just one massive barrier that would collect the waste plastic, but the new modular design is made up of a fleet of floating screens that act as an artificial coastline.
The new technology, alongside successful funding, has enabled The Ocean Cleanup to accelerate production, deployment, and the actual extraction of plastic.
The first test will take place off the West Coast of America, with the aim of starting on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the first half of 2018, which is two years ahead of schedule.
Boyan Slat, founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup, said: “At The Ocean Cleanup we are always looking for ways to make the clean-up faster, better, and cleaner. Today is another important day in moving in that direction.”
Slat who was speaking at an event in Utrecht, unveiled the first part of the clean-up system, the four 12-metre high anchor components.
These anchors ensure the screens are still able to move, but makes sure they move slower than the plastic, to collect the maximum amount of waste.
Once the waste plastic is collected, it can be extracted and shipped to shore to be recycled into durable products.
Slat concluded: “The clean-up of the world’s oceans is just around the corner. Due to our attitude of ‘testing to learn’ until the technology is proven, I am confident that, with our expert partners, we will succeed in our missions.”
Slat set up The Ocean Cleanup in 2013, when he was 18, and it now employs over 65 engineers and researchers.