The Ocean Cleanup

Yesterday, The Ocean Cleanup vessels returned to San Francisco with tons of trash onboard and exciting news on what it will concretely take to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The real-world performance of System 03 during the past 12 months has demonstrated that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch can be cleaned in 10 years’ time at a cost of 7.5 billion dollars. In the meantime, to accelerate the cleanup, we are developing methods to use GPS trackers and directly measure plastic concentrations with drones: hotspot hunting. We now have the technology to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch; the only thing standing between the world and clean oceans is money. So we call upon the world—the governments, the companies, and the individuals—to make this cleanup happen.

Latest from Guatemala: Interceptor 021 has been deployed and is showing a promising start in El Quetzalito. This latest river project is in collaboration with Guatemala’s Ministry of Environment (MARN), which already operates a plastic collecting and sorting facility in El Quetzalito and will take responsibility for the operations and waste management. Learn more about this project on our website: https://lnkd.in/eprJQkEn.

The only thing standing between the world and a clean ocean is money. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch can be cleaned, and this is how cheap it is to clean it:

NOW HIRING: Project Lead - Hotspot Detection In this role, you will be responsible for aligning internal requirements and creating a comprehensive delivery plan. You’ll engage with suppliers, partners, and subcontractors to ensure the correct sourcing of equipment. Additionally, you’ll oversee the design, manufacturing, and testing of products, ensuring they meet quality standards, budget constraints, and timelines. Learn more and apply on our website: https://lnkd.in/ekj2kAeP

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the biggest accumulation of floating ocean plastic on Earth, with 180 times more plastic than biomass floating at its surface. Marine animals migrating through or inhabiting this area are, therefore, likely consuming plastic in the patch. Here is a shot of one of the many visitors we encounter in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch reminding us of the importance of our mission to rid the world’s oceans of plastic:

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the largest accumulation of floating ocean plastic on Earth. 1.8 trillion plastic pieces are estimated to be floating in the patch—250 pieces of debris for every human on Earth. The plastic is persistent - some of the oldest pieces we found in the GPGP date back to the 1960s. It won't go away by itself. The good news is that we now have the tools to clean this up: at a cost of 7.5 billion dollars, which is less than 0.5% of the net worth of the 10 richest people on Earth. It's also less than what the USA spends on Halloween decorations each year. The only thing standing between the world and clean oceans is money. When do we start? Up to you. Here's how you can help:

For the first time, we can put a price tag on cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. We now call upon the world - governments, companies, individuals - to make this cleanup happen.

It’s been six years since we launched the world’s first cleanup system from San Francisco to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Next week, The Ocean Cleanup vessels return to SF with System 03, tons of trash onboard, and exciting news to share. Share this post, invite your network, and tune in live on September 6th at 9 PM (CEST) | 3 PM (EST) | 12 PM (PDT): theoceancleanup.com/live

In 2018, we sailed out of San Francisco Bay with one goal: to create technology to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Six years later, we are returning to San Francisco with our cleanup system, System 03, and exciting news to share with the world. Set a reminder & tune in LIVE:

Another day in the office for System 03 in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. 🌊 Some facts: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) is the largest accumulation of floating ocean plastic in the world. GPGP is located halfway between Hawaii and California. The GPGP covers an estimated surface area twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France. System 03 is big. It has a floating barrier approximately 2.2 km (1.4 miles) long. So far, we've cleaned up over 445,000 kg / 981,000 lbs of plastic, but there's still a long way to go. Follow the exact location and impact of System 03: https://lnkd.in/eq7Xceth