Schiller (2017) reported in the article “Boy Genius
Boyan Slat’s Great Ocean Cleanup Machine is Real” that the project to clean up
the Great Pacific Garbage Patch would commence in 2018, where a machine
collects garbage that circulates around a vortex in the center of the
patch. A "technological breakthrough" promised to make the
system more robust, affordable, and 'scalable' by transforming the original
idea of having a massive single inflatable boom to be anchored to the seabed,
into a system of fifty suspended one-kilometre long solid booms. Attached to
the booms by long lines are anchors, with surface areas of 328ft2, found deep
below the water's surface where the currents are four times slower. They acted
as parachutes to slow down each boom relative to the surface currents, which
allows them to behave as man-made coastlines to capture the trash. The change
in the system's design significantly reduced its estimated cost from its
original $320 million projection. $30 million has been raised since last November
via donations and sixty-five people have begun working on the project. The goal
is to collect half of the trash in five years and recycle the collected waste
to recoup the cost.
Although Slat’s design system in collecting the garbage
and was clear and innovative as described by Schiller, there is still a
controversy in terms of the machine’s efficiency, the machine’s cost and its
impact in the ocean condition.
Firstly, even though the machine was designed in a way
that can theoretically capture half of the Pacific's garbage patch in just five years, the designers did not fully consider
it in the ocean conditions. According to Kart (2018), their recent test carried
out in September 2018 and found that the machine did not perform as well as
their expectations. According to Summers (2018), placing
the boom in the ocean the current and pathway
of collecting the garbage. The plastic waste was seen driven around the system
instead of being concentrated in the middle. Furthermore, the machine faced
another problem whereby the plastic waste that was collected only stayed in the
system for a short period of time. Kart (2018) stated that the system needs to
move at a fast-continuous pace to retain the plastic waste that was caught. In
order to solve this issue, the team had to redesign the system. In my opinion,
the bold statement of clearing the half of the current trash in five years as described
by Schiller, should be made after several testing of the machine in the ocean
since currently it is facing technical challenges.
Secondly, in the article, Schiller (2017) stated that the machine approximately cost
lower than $320 million. However, that is still a huge amount of money to be
raised. King (2019) reported that the machine is too costly to build and the organization
would not be profiting for the time being due to the “market price for
discarded plastic remains incredibly low.” I believe that if there is not
enough funding to this project, the machine might not be performing
efficiently, and the team would be progressing at a much slower pace.
Lastly, deploying
the machine in the ocean may have an environmental impact
on the marine life. According to Loria (2018), it is impossible for a massive
floating device to clean up a huge amount of plastic waste without endangering
the marine life or adding plastic waste to the situation. Even though Slat’s
intention was to save the environment, I feel that he should provide a periodic
statistical analysis as evidence to show that the machine did not affect any marine
life periodically.
In conclusion, even though the idea of cleaning the
great pacific garbage patch faces a lot of obstacles along the way, I can see
that the creator Boyan Slat is optimistic and confident that one day his
creation will clear the plastic waste in the ocean. Critics suggest that
dealing with the root cause of the problem would be of a better solution, but
Slat’s stand is clear that someone must clear the huge garbage patch since it
is already out there. I believed that Slat should provide relevant evidence to support
his goals that he had set to meet. This would help to convince the audience
that his idea would be successful one day.
References
Kart,
J. (2018, December 05). The ocean cleanup isn't capturing plastic, but organizers are testing a solution. Forbes. Retrieved
from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkart/2018/12/05/the-ocean-cleanup-isnt-capturing-plastic-but-organizers-are-testing-a-solution/#5876a0c41749
King, P. (2019, February 10). Ocean cleanup won't turn a profit, but we
should still do it. The conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/ocean-cleanup-wont-turn-a-profit-but-we-should-still-do-it-104097
Loria,
K. (2018, September 07). A 24-year-old is going ahead with a controversial plan
to trap plastic floating in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Some experts are
worried. Business Insider. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.sg/boyan-slat-ocean-cleanup-launch-into-pacific-on-september-8-2018-7/?_ga=2.69266518.730627668.1549380864-1426863861.1549380861&r=US&IR=T
Schiller, B. (2017, November 05). Boy genius Boyan Slat's giant
Ocean Cleanup Machine is real. Fast company. Retrieved
from https://www.fastcompany.com/40419899/boy-genius-boyan-slats- giant-ocean-cleanup-machine-is-real
