Oceans | Updates | The Ocean Cleanup

Persistent legacy plastic fragments are rising disproportionally faster than larger floating objects in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Latest peer-reviewed publication reveals that legacy plastic fragments are rising disproportionally faster than larger floating objects in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Oceans

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch can be Cleaned for $7.5 Billion

The Ocean Cleanup’s operations demonstrate that the elimination of the GPGP can be done at today’s level of performance in 10 years at a cost of $7.5bn

General, Oceans

The Ocean Cleanup Streams Extraction #100 Live From The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The Ocean Cleanup has completed its 100th extraction of plastic trash from the Pacific Ocean – and for the first time ever, the entire operation was streamed worldwide, live and…

General, Oceans

The Ocean Cleanup Returns to Great Pacific Garbage Patch for Most Ambitious Year Yet

The Ocean Cleanup has returned to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch with an upgraded and optimized System 03.

General, Oceans

System 03: A Beginner’s Guide

This week, we deployed System 03 in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch for the first time. Nearly three times larger than our previous technology and capable of cleaning the area…

General, Oceans

What Jenny Taught Us: Lessons from System 002

On 21 August 2023, System 002 (or Jenny, as we call her) returned to port for the last time as we move to the larger and upgraded System 03. After…

Camera skiff on top of the retention zone of System 002. The camera skiff helps us monitor the system from a distance.

Environment, Oceans

System 002 and Marine Life: Prevention and Mitigation

In this update we present data on our mitigation measures and our impact on the marine life over the first 12 trips of System 002, which took place between July…

General, Oceans

System 002 Signs Off for 2022 – Redeployment in Spring 2023

As we enter winter, it is time to bring our system back to port for scheduled evaluation and upgrades as part of the ongoing transition to the larger and more…

Oceans, Research

The Other Source: Where Does Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Come From?

Our new study published today in Scientific Reports reveals that 75% to 86% of plastic debris in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) originates from fishing activities at sea. While…

Oceans, Research

North Atlantic Microplastic Concentrations May Exceed Safe Levels for Marine Life Without Intervention

Our latest research suggests levels of microplastic pollution in the ocean water column may soon exceed safe limits for marine organisms, especially in areas of high plastic concentration.