The Ocean Cleanup (TOC) organization has promised to eliminate the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) within 10 years at an estimated cost of $7.5 billion.
Recently, The Ocean Cleanup (TOC) announced a timeline of 10 years and a budget of $7.5 billion to permanently clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), as reported by New Atlas on September 17. The GPGP is a swirling mass of waste located in the central North Pacific Ocean between the coastal regions of California and Hawaii, one of five offshore garbage accumulation zones. According to TOC, if their latest technology concept proves feasible, the time and cost for cleaning up the garbage patch will be halved to 5 years and $4 billion.
TOC’s floating plastic waste cleanup system. (Image: TOC).
The GPGP is estimated to cover an area of 600,000 to 1,600,000 square kilometers, containing approximately 80,000 tons of debris floating on or near the ocean’s surface. The patch primarily consists of trillions of tiny plastic particles but also includes fishing nets, single-use water bottles, nylon bags, televisions, soccer balls, rubber ducks, and used syringes. Researchers have noted the presence of 46 different species living in the garbage patch, including crabs, oysters, hydroids, clams, and spiders. Due to plastic being non-biodegradable, it breaks down into smaller pieces known as microplastics under the persistent effects of ultraviolet rays and ocean waves, posing a greater challenge for cleanup efforts.
The Ocean Cleanup is a nonprofit organization founded in 2013 with the goal of cleaning up the GPGP. To date, they have collected approximately 12 million kilograms of waste from underwater ecosystems worldwide, with 454,000 kilograms of that amount originating from the GPGP, accounting for about 0.5% of the garbage patch.
The Ocean Cleanup has developed a method called System 03 (as it is the third version) to remove waste from the ocean. It consists of a 2.2 km long floating barrier stretched between two ships moving at pedestrian speeds, equipped with a 4-meter deep screen to capture all floating debris. The system utilizes ocean tracking data and AI modeling to navigate towards areas with the highest density of plastic waste, maximizing its efficiency.
System 03 can clean an area the size of a football field in about 5 seconds. Once the system has collected the debris, all of it is gathered into a giant bag, lifted onto the ship, and dumped onto a platform for sorting and packaging for recycling. The Ocean Cleanup has even partnered with companies like Kia to transport the recycled plastic waste for electric vehicle production. TOC has also produced sunglasses from waste collected in the GPGP.
