Today’s Solutions: January 21, 2025

From ocean trash capture systems to innovative river barges, The Ocean Cleanup Project is dedicated to cleaning our waterways of pollution. In recent years, the organization has focused on scaling up its solutions to address massive areas of pollution, like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Their newest design, called System 002, has recently returned from the Patch, and the team is hailing the system as a massive success.

System 002 launched in August and uses active propulsion to tow the litter-capturing system through the ocean. The horseshoe-shaped mechanism is towed through the water by two boats, funneling plastic waste into a collection system. The system, nicknamed Jenny, is 800 meters long, significantly boosting collection capabilities compared to previous systems.

The Ocean Cleanup team is in the process of conducting 70 separate tests to determine the efficacy of Jenny. The last test, which took six weeks, captured a record amount of plastic waste. Ocean Cleanup CEO Boyan Slat tweeted: “It all worked!!! Massive load. We’ll try to get the footage to land ASAP to share.”

Image source: The Ocean Cleanup

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