“The Ocean Cleanup”: Two million dollars for the marine rescuers – Handelsblatt

Dusseldorf When asked what he would like for the future, answers Boyan Slat: “I wish to dive to go and swim through fish instead of plastic. “Plastic is the big problem of the oceans. Every day it is produced, each day ends up in the oceans of the world. The 21-year-old Dutchman who founded the organization “The Ocean Cleanup” (TOC) and will revolutionize the fight against pollution with the same project

The concept is simple. Should on the sea of ​​the North Pacific, two 50 kilometers long tubes are mounted, hung with permeable container. This reflects the garbage to get caught – and without that animals or plankton thereby cause damage

In order for the tubes to remain at the same place, they are attached with weights on the seabed.. Every 45 days to ship the model approach and empty the container. And it should also bring money. Converted 50 euro for a ton of plastic waste that is recycled on land

in the North and Baltic alone land every day tons of plastic waste in the sea. Reasons for this are the shipping, tourism and industry on land. For decades, scientists have been trying to rid the ocean of garbage and come across the same problems: too expensive, too expensive, too dangerous for fish and other marine life

Especially admonish the last point. Animal rights activists regularly. So fishing nets for fishing out the garbage today mostly used. This can rob many animals life, says Stefanie Werner from the Federal Environment Agency. “With Slats model organisms such as fish with high probability simply wegtauchen underneath.” That would be in practice, however, prove yet.