![]() ![]() Invented by Dutch NGO The Ocean Cleanup, the main structure is attached to a barrier stretching at an angle across a river, which directs drifting plastic into the barge. The barge-like Interceptor can detain thousands of tonnes of plastic before it reaches the ocean. So while we figure out how to break up with plastic, the 20 inventions below can play a role in reducing its impact, and perhaps unpicking some of the damage that’s already been done. And in the interim, tonnes of plastic will continue entering rivers and flowing into the seas. Combined action from governments, companies and consumers is the only way to move the dial on this ultimate goal.Įven if we do all of this, however, these changes will be gradual – taking years, if not decades, to unfold. And, ultimately, it means closing the tap on all non-essential production of this material. That not only means reusing and recycling more, but also drastically reducing the production of single-use plastics, which are used for a day but can persist in the environment for centuries. The Interceptor barge is one innovation helping to clear rivers of plastic waste before it enters the sea (Image: The Ocean Cleanup)īut can technology really solve the plastics crisis? Arguably, the only real solution is to stop making so much plastic available to infiltrate the environment in the first place. Some, however, venture much further out to tackle the gargantuan task of scooping plastic directly out of the open ocean. The majority of these inventions target pollution in rivers, down which most waste travels before reaching the seas. With everything from plastic-munching machines, to watchful drones and microplastic-dissolving technologies, they’re finding clever ways to remove plastics from the ocean – or to stop it reaching there in the first place. As it enters the food chain, it also potentially leaches toxins into animals’ bodies – with as-yet largely unknown effects on these creatures, and the humans who consume them.Īround the world, inventors, scientists and entrepreneurs are trying to innovate us out of this predicament. It brings the risk of entanglement, and starvation (as species mistake plastics for food). In the meantime, plastic – both macro and micro – wreaks havoc on marine life. But the hardy nature of the material means that this process can take hundreds of years. Once in the ocean, plastic is broken down by the sun’s rays and by wind and waves, eventually transforming into smaller fragments called microplastics. Most plastic enters the ocean via rivers, which carry vast amounts of waste from inland sources. That’s only increased thanks to Covid-19 and the resulting surge in single-use items like masks and gloves. An additional 8 million tonnes finds its way into the ocean every year. There’s an incomprehensible amount of plastic in the ocean – estimates put the known total at 5 trillion individual pieces, or around 150 million tonnes. ![]()
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