Researchers Found a Way to Clean the Great Pacific Garbage Patch by 2040

Photo: The Ocean Cleanup/Facebook

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located between California and Hawaii, and, according to The Ocean Cleanup, it’s made up of 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic that weigh about 80,000 tons. That makes it the largest of five trash patches in the oceans. To gather that trash, The Ocean Cleanup uses a long floating device towed between two boats to form a U shape. The device works as an artificial coastline that concentrates the plastic debris. By moving slowly forward, the two boats capture the trash and trap it in a retention zone. The retention zone is then sealed and taken onboard to be emptied.

The technology behind the Ocean Cleanup is first and foremost the result of Boyan Slat’s hard work. In 2012, an 18-year-old Slat held a TedX talk to explain how we could remove plastic pollution from the ocean. Today, thanks to Slat, we’re closer than ever to cleaning the oceans.

To clear the 5 trillion pieces of plastic polluting our oceans — from tiny pieces of plastic to huge portions of fish nets — The Ocean Cleanup needs to scale up its technology. System 003, a larger and more efficient system, is already in the works. The Ocean Cleanup wants to reduce 90 percent of the floating ocean plastic by 2040.