No one is keeping score, but Wilson, the name given to the 2,000-foot-long (600 meters) U-shaped “Ocean Cleanup Array,” had a few problems to pop up after being launched on September 8, 2018, from San Francisco Bay.
On December 18, Digital Journal reported the floating device sent to corral a swirling island of trash between California and Hawaii has not swept up any plastic waste — but Ocean Cleanup founder Boyan Slat said a fix was in the works.
Then, on January 2, 2019, Digital Journal reported a 60-foot chunk of the Ocean Cleanup device had broken off and the entire plastic collection system would have to be towed back to port for an overhaul and upgrade.
A new day and a glowing report
Perseverance has won out in the end and Boyan Slat announced on October 2 the latest prototype of the huge floating device was able to capture and hold debris ranging in size from huge clumps of abandoned fishing gear, known as “ghost nets,” to tiny microplastics as small as 1 millimeter.
In its press release, The Ocean Cleanup said: “Today, we announced that System 001/B is successfully capturing and collecting plastic debris. After one year of testing, we have succeeded in developing a self-contained system in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that is using the natural forces of the ocean to passively catch and concentrate plastic, thereby confirming the most important principle behind the cleanup concept that was first presented by Boyan Slat at a TEDx conference in October 2012.”
“Our team has remained steadfast in its determination to solve immense technical challenges to arrive at this point. Though we still have much more work to do, I am eternally grateful for the team’s commitment and dedication to the mission and look forward to continuing to the next phase of development.”
The barrier holds a 10-foot (3-meter) screen below the surface to catch plastics without interfering with marine life. Satellites and sensors signal its location so garbage can be retrieved every few months, reports The Hill.
“I think in a few years’ time when we have the full-scale fleet out there, I think it should be possible to cover the operational cost of the cleanup operation using the plastic harvested,” Slat reportedly said at a press conference.
