Inventor Boyan Slat from the Netherlands has taken on a huge problem, ocean pollution, and come up with a solution that will get rid of millions of tons of plastic waste. Not bad considering he is just 20-years-old. Part of the difficulty in cleaning up the ocean lies in the world’s rotating currents, but Slat’s invention has come up with a way to use those currents to its advantage.
Long floats will sit on the surface of the ocean, collecting plastic waste and rubbish that floats on the surface whilst allowing the currents and marine life to pass by underneath, having minimal impact of the surrounding environment. Using this system it is estimated that over a 10 year period 42% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch could be removed. Thats an incredible 70,320,000kg of plastic waste!.
There are however a few technical issues that have been highlighted with Slats design, something that we hope is sorted now that a trial has begun in Japan. For more information visit theoceancleanup.com.
The floating line is 2,000m long, making it the longest floating strucutre in the world.
The floating structures will hopefully be deployed in 2016 with the aim to cleanup 42% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
They will do this by targeting locations where rotating currents create a high build up of waste.
h/t boredpanda.com
