System 03: Your Questions Answered Directly From the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | the Ocean Cleanup

In August 2023, we deployed System 03 to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch for the first time. We’ve got a lot of questions from you on how System 03 operates, what we do to keep it safe for marine life, what happens to our catch after we extract it - and many more. Subscribe to our channel to stay updated: bit.ly/371k8sN
Watch our on-board experts in the GPGP answer your questions and give more insight into how we’re ridding the oceans of plastic during one of the last trips offshore this year. What else would you like to know?
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:32 How long do you tow the cleanup system before extracting the plastic?
01:28 Why aren't there more cleanup systems deployed? Every country should help.
03:12 What happens to the extracted plastic?
04:16 How many plastic straws do you find among the plastic catch?
06:01 Can we dump plastic waste to space?
07:18 How do you avoid catching fish and other marine animals?
09:16 Have you considered alternative driving technologies for the ships (e.g. solar panels)?
11:40 How is your work being financed?
12:22 Where can I donate?
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System 03 is a cleaning system which removes plastic from the ocean,n early three times larger than our previous technology and capable of cleaning the area of a football field every five seconds.
The system consists of a floating barrier approximately 2.2 km (1.4 miles) long, which is towed between two slow-moving vessels. This barrier suspends a screen extending 4 meters (13 feet) below the surface of the water, where most floating plastic is encountered.
System 03 is The Ocean Cleanup’s third iteration of cleaning technology and was deployed to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) in August 2023 following testing with System 001 and the success of System 002, which extracted over 250,000 kg (620,000 lbs) of plastic from the GPGP between 2021 and 2023.
Learn more here: theoceancleanup.com/updates/s...
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Learn more and support us at www.theoceancleanup.com/
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Facebook: TheOceanCleanup/
Twitter: TheOceanCleanup
Instagram: theoceancleanup
TikTok: tiktok.com/@theoceancleanup

[@Yologod]

Need to expose the fishing industry more

[@paularmstrong4996]

Is all the fishing gear caught due to deliberately dumping it. I thought a lot of it was dragged out to sea by the 2004 and 2011 tsunamis

[@SwirlingSoul]

They are actually working WITH the fishing industry, to both improve netting, and helping them supply netting that is now catching garbage. There's always more sides to the story. The fishing industry (at least a good part of it) is actually trying to help with changing the ways!

[@sarahbudgeon8539]

I agree totally with you they need to expose the fishing industry with heavy fines n bans

[@shannoncargo468]

Pretty much every industry has a negative effect for this planet as a commercial fishermen my self I do my best to leave this place better than when I was here I even pick up garbage my self if I run into some on the ocean

[@dadcooks1347]

Just don’t purchase deep sea Fish. Pass it on…..

[@stuartmcrae1647]

In a world being run by lunatics, hell-bent on destroying it, I want to say a big thank you for the fantastic work you do in helping to clean up our oceans and rivers. Great video guys and good answers to some great questions!

[@magnumxlpi]

Lol you are the problem. You ignore that this is complete nonsense and this company is lying to you, but you want to believe it so bad cause it makes you feel good. Leave your feelings out of it and realize how inefficient this company is and how they're dumping plastic on the boat that they collect on shore for dramatic effect Edit: let's also not forget how they use the plastic to make cheap products that'll just be lost or thrown away so they can make more money😂😂😂if they cared they'd be making homes with the plastic or something substantial that won't be thrown away

[@DoingMoreWithLess]

Every plastics manufacturer should be required to contribute to this cleanup. Just 1% of their gross sales would add up to be billions of dollars. Water bottles, soda bottles, coolers, Porta potties, ropes, nets, buoys, sandals, synthetic fabrics, cellphone cases, straws, grocery bags, those silly floating key fobs, sunglasses, beach chairs and umbrellas, milk crates, pallets, l8fe preservers, kayaks and paddles.

[@SwirlingSoul]

This is one of the very few projects that have a planetary effect. I find it so so hopeful. 🥰

[@susanhawkins3045]

Thank you all for the work you are doing to clean up our mess. May we all take note and do our bit throughout the world. Thank you again ❤

[@magnumxlpi]

You're thanking them while they lie to you and use the plastic they get to make cheap sunglasses and bracelets so they can make more money while those products are easily lost and destroyed creating much more waste and hazards because now instead of large pieces of plastic you have thousands of small pieces plus all the resources that went into creating them in the first place

[@alexnutcasio936]

I think what you’re doing is awesome. More countries should be providing financial assistance to this.

[@robertkemper7640]

I did appreciate the Q&A, I learned a lot. I would like to see more of the results, such as the dumping of the capture bag and the sorting of its contents. That is where we, the public, will get a better understanding of the severity of the ocean pollution. Thanks again and keep up the good work.

[@bjbsi]

You are all the real HEROS❤❤❤❤❤

[@luckosteve12]

Every update from this project makes the future seem a little brighter.

[@Mel-jr5cz]

thank you so much for answering so succinctly! Transparency is often lacking in big missions like this, so it's fantastic to see

[@michele7607]

Hello and respect to all the designers, financiers, organizers, operators, teams and so on for this fantastic resolution and activation of a real and efficient way to clean our Planet's Oceans ! Even for this one single person living in South-East of France, Italian boarder, where beaches are fairly clean, you might not imagine the impact, the relief, the joy, the renewed confidence in humanity you are bringing ! I can feel that a huge weight has been lifted from my heart. THANK YOU !

[@sarahbudgeon8539]

Fishing industry shpuld be looked at thanks soo much for what u r doin for the occeans everyone should be doin there bit

[@watrgrl2]

Love what you guys are doing. It has made me much more conscious of what I buy that has plastic that can’t be recycled and I try not to add plastic to the environment. One industry that needs to be examined is the pharmaceutical companies and Pharmacies because all those plastic pill bottles & lids are not recyclable and I’ve reused as many as I can for small items in my tool box, fishing gear, and for art & crafting supplies and projects and for seeds in gardening but they just keep coming and pharmacies won’t reuse your bottles for your own meds due to risks of cross contamination.

[@justinmas299]

you lot are the best of the best humans

[@jonesgeoffs]

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for all your work helping to protect our biosphere from plastic waste!!! Have you considered using the plastic as fuel for your ships? have you considered using the plastic to make "Giant Lego blocks" for building houses people can live in?...;-)

[@karenzorn773]

Thank you for doing this, such a great project, keep up good work and giving us updates on progress.

[@wolfman3295]

TOC is doing a really good job! I have been a subscriber to OCN or Ocean Conservation Namibia for a few years and I love the rescues they do and they always post statistics at the end of each video which are quite alarming and one of them was that industries have the technology to reduce plastic in the oceans by something like 87% but will only try to use 7% and most of the plastics they find on the fur seals they rescue comes from commercial fishing and the rest from recreational fishing. I am also trying to work with Terracycle to work with TOC and OCN. Unfortunately as almost always happens though it will take a very intense shock to the general population to force them to wake up and be held accountable. Trust me, they DO NOT want that to happen. Nothing can get worse than pissing off Mother Earth! And I mean NOTHING. She could easily eliminate 99% of all her children in a few minutes. She did it once before.

[@freudsigmund72]

as they state at Ocean Conservation Namibia that for their end of tackling the plastic problem, that there are rules in place regarding the disposal of waste by shipping and especially fishing, but there is no enforcement. This way it is like mopping with the tap open.

[@OublietteTight]

Good guys always have the dream/ goal to make their jobs obsolete. Your project fits the bill. 😊

[@Jrock9492]

This is beyond amazing and hopeful. You guys are putting in tremendous effort that is a making an actual difference. Thank you for this. Are there any plans for a cleanup in the Northeast US region?

[@Moonchild-bb5dr]

Just stumbled across your channel. How did you start all this? Is it private funding and or gov? Incredible what you guys are doing. I saw a documentary many years ago about thst huge trash island and i thought how on earth is this planet gonna get cleaned up at this rate. Much time has passed since i saw that vid and now this much has been done since. Truly amazing. A few countries can have pollution regulations but if all dont then its futile. Kinda feel like this is equivalent to someone wiping soneone elses booty because they refuse to wipe their own butt. Hopefully these countries that dont have trash cleanup within their cities will catch on and get the hint some day

[@MrRoiseL]

Your answer to the question: "what happens to the collected plastic" (from minute 10) is more than meagre. You have to have a plan - worldwide these are thousands of tons of plastic, there must be a plan and it is more transparent for all the supporters of your unique work when it becomes clear what else can be made of the plastic waste. The sunglasses are cool, but only a small drop in a big pond. Thank you very much for your answer and continue to succeed in your mission.

[@annejeppesen160]

I was left with: soooooo what happens to the plastic????? Indeed a very lacklustre answer 😒

[@elainerose8799]

Can we have a more in depth video about the effort in Guatemala please 🙏🏻

[@lvn968]

Keep it going guys; great important work you do ! THX !

[@ethanmoore9041]

Thanks for what you do, Merry Christmas!!!

[@redsnapper8811]

Really enjoyed the Q&A. Would love to see more

[@mannythehunter]

For some reason as soon as they mentioned sending the plastic to space I started thinking of the futurama garbage episode!!

[@DC9848]

I think EU/UN/WMO should implement a new policy where rfids are required to be embedded into the fishing nets already in the factory. Then fishing vessels are inspected at sea and huge fines are issued if there are no RFIDs in their nets. This would make it more easier to trace the nets's owners

[@veldawells2839]

Wonderful Q&A session. Extremely educational. I hope in the short term you receive greater sponsorship to allow your organisation to expand, explore, and create systems for all water sources, from coastal seas, large rivers and other oceans. With the creators, scientists, data, reports, volunteers and workers, and financial sponsors you will prevail in making oceans a cleaner and saver place for wildlife. I am subscriber to Ocean Conservation Namibia 🇳🇦, and the seals on Pelican Point suffer great harm and death from fishing flotsam and jetsam that get caught on their fins, neck, mouth. This leads to starvation, weakness and severe cuts. Could you contact OCN and work with them in the ocean area? Please keep up your extremely good work.

[@ash7324]

They glossed over the question about what’s going to happen to the plastic they’ve extracted, it’s a huge part of the process and there hasn’t been any details about it since those glasses way back in system 1 and that’s all they’ve mentioned about it.

[@mattweddle3107]

For the vast majority of plastic removed, it's storage. There are dozens of types of plastic, so plastics have to be carefully sorted for recycling. Recycled plastic is more expensive to produce than new plastic. The best answer is to stop producing plastic. But the only thing more powerful than huge corporations is "We the People" - government. Laws, regulations, and treaties are the only things that can slow or stop the production of new plastic. Talk to your elected officials every chance you get, and stop electing people that promise to deregulate big business.

[@ash7324]

@@mattweddle3107Thanks for that considered answer man. I by no means want to cast shade on this project I think it's excellent, it just seems like a link in the chain they haven't spoke about much. I hope they do find a decent second usage for all of the grades of plastic they find, or otherwise find a way to break it back down to it's polymers to use as precursor for new product.

[@BalboaBaggins]

@@ash7324 They've answered this question many times before and it's also found on their website: most is recycled, the rest is incinerated for electricity.

[@donfredo8013]

Love you guys - thank you.

[@iuliiavasiuta2740]

Thank you ❤

[@dafischi6444]

Awesome, keep on going! 👏👏👏

[@mariapatrascu1788]

Great team, great job , all respect ! ❤🎉

[@LouiseTichenor]

Every person is responsible and we all have to support this effort just like we pay taxes

[@erjusik]

This was very interesting, thank you!😊

[@ShotbyNielsen]

Thank you for what You are doing. Its really impressive and soo important 🙏🙏😊

[@mikeoxlong5568]

Can you tell us a little about the impact of weather conditions?

[@MarcoPhillips]

I missed this Q&A I have a couple of questions. I am gonna ask here. - If the majority of garbage in the patches is from the fishing industry isn't there a way of making the industry pay? - The other question is regarding alternative energies to power the tow, which I know that was asked. How ever my question is, have you though about nuclear reactors or whatever is used in submarines? I know nuclear anything has a very bad press but is the fact is (I think) it's most efficient way of producing cheap non global warming energy in an scalable way that would not required all sentient beings to relocate to the underworlds.

[@annejeppesen160]

Nuclear power is an entirely different kettle of fish! You need specialized crew, and completely new vessels. I believe there is a reason only submarines of all navy vessels are nuclear powered

[@shannoncausey9805]

Thank you all so much

[@SJ8311]

Cool sunglasses! Have you met Fishy Fillaments? They're doing amazing things with discarded fishing nets.

[@questjoyner5086]

Thank you so so much for cleaning our spaceship

[@michaeltorbensen679]

While the rest of the world is scared shitless of what might actually come of all these global impacts, there are people like this who really put their mind and their life into caring for Mother Earth. Thank you so much for doing this and I hope all continues to go well throughout 2024!!!!🌏🌍🌎🌟

[@sinaneriks]

Watch the river cleaning episodes. They use, probably, tens of trucks to remove the plastic out of the collection site. Energy, time, money, etc., gone just to carry those nasty plastic clusters. I hope they find a better and/or efficient way to handle this problem.

[@jmonsted]

It would be very cool if the ship could be fueled by the less useful plastic types. Gotta pyrolyze it into something resembling heavy fuel oil, i imagine, but that's likely too energy intensive to happen at sea at least.

[@bach0810]

Yes it is fantastic

[@stevelizewski5944]

Should make a floating supply hub to cut on travel and convert plastic to biodiesel, raise fish for food supplies to make 24/7 clean-up

[@lfc1981]

interesting! keep up the great work !!!

[@johnmetzger7185]

Love everything TOC is doing; the concepts are sound and the Technologies are in constant improvement. Given youve been at this a couple years now, are you able to provide a measuable decrease of the Pacific garbage patch??

[@inuscoetzee8251]

Great stuff. all the best.

[@Pottery4Life]

Thank you.

[@Mintghbghlkk]

Fantastic work guys

[@tuju-]

You need to make the storage bag rigid and put a conveyor at the end of it. Then you can run it continously and collect the content without stopping trawling the net and tugs.

[@carriemacdonald8022]

I saw where you were working to reuse the plastics - what sort of things do you remake with the plastics? Do any of the things you fish out get re-used, especially the fishing gear meant for ocean use and made durable?

[@louiselansbury9733]

Did you see the episode of Dr Who when the Dr explains and raises awareness of plastic in the Ocean? she mentions the Gias.

[@kutyagyemant3635]

Jó arcok vagytok! Kitartást

[@florforever1]

So Awesome! 😇

[@georgelawton9075]

I suspect there’s a lot of plastic on the bottom of the ocean. I suspect we can’t recover that plastic. So is that plastic a hazardous to the bottom of the ocean? Thank you for all the work you do. 😅

[@alexnutcasio936]

You’re statement is inaccurate. In general, plastics are less dense than the water around them, thus they float. Microplastics may be closer to the ocean bottom, but in general, almost all plastics readily float.

[@BalboaBaggins]

@@alexnutcasio936 Of course not. Heavy things like clothing, porcelain, wood, etc immediately sinks. Plastic things can and will eventually sink too. I've been cleaning out ponds with a rake for years. You have no idea how polluted just 1 pond can be. When The Ocean Cleanup is done cleaning the water surface with this system, we definitely need to scale up dive clean-ups.

[@annejeppesen160]

@@BalboaBagginshow do you suggest to do that on depths of several kilometers. Think of what equipment is required to visit the Titanic wreck. Or the controversy surrounding deep sea mining…

[@arog7493]

A very interesting question I would like answered if possible is; what do you do about any actually natural debris? As far as I'm aware, natural debris are useful for fish as shelter.

[@robbrenton9438]

Cool AF 😎

[@bigvig209]

Do the engines on the Maersk ocean tugs use diesel fuel? If so, have you explored the use of biodiesel to fuel the tugs?

[@annejeppesen160]

The trouble with biodiesel is the types we have at the moment requires dedicated farmland and thus harm the environment as well (takes “room” from food production or increase the farmed area causing loss of biodiversity, etc)

[@chandraprasad5213]

Hope to see you guys soon in indian waters!

[@felixlamm7528]

Modern fishing boats are planned as a complete production site. I wonder if they are planning to industrialize this catching of plastics

[@mikegwilton]

Absolutely awesome work, well done!! Why don't you compress the plastic, with a press, when it comes out the bag?

[@paulcullen922]

Heroes!

[@89volvowithlazers]

Great job tres beaucoup

[@calvinsfujii1493]

I would like to see the people who use the plastic making things from the plastic from your collection

[@jasonbullock2816]

Please save the planet and its animals and us😊😊😊

[@Baumbub]

Sau guter Job 😊

[@giovannielisei2294]

A genuine questions of mine is: I've seen you somewhat sort the plastic on board once it has been collected. Why not just simply store it and do this process on land, perhaps in a more efficient way? Anyway you guys are doing a great job, hope to see more of this in the future

[@arnavrawat9864]

Ocean plastic decomposes so maybe to limit microplastic?

[@annejeppesen160]

Maybe because the alternative for the crew is sitting around twiddling their thumbs 🤔

[@preskopresko6427]

I have a question. Why not put the Interceptor in one of the most polluting rivers, the Rio Motagua?

[@moiragores1226]

If you have to do an emergency release due to trapped animals, what happens to that released rubbish? Do you basically turn around and try to catch it again as quickly as you can? If yes, would be great to see a video how you do that!

[@tuju-]

Trap opens before the bottom of the bag where all the plastic is.

[@moiragores1226]

@@tuju- Hey, that is only the trap. But they sometimes have to do emergency releases, where all the rubbish has to be released again. I've seen a few videos where this was neccesarry, and they mention it in this video too. So the question stands, what happens with that released rubbish. I am not talking about the trap opens to let animals out in the first stage. Sometimes it still happens that animals get into the back part with all the rubbish. This is what I am talking about ;)

[@LAT.MTL.]

FUNDRAISING IDEA for you: 24hrs livestream paid subscription. I am certain that people would pay to watch the mundane day to day collection process. Maybe a second camera on the deck when the “catch” comes in, so you can switch the viewing experience from ocean to deck etc. Foreseeable issue to solve: constant internet connection in the middle of the ocean. Maybe tech capability is not enough yet or too expensive at this time. I LOVE YOUR PROJECT and want to see more…

[@TopXA]

I had already bought the glasses but I would like more! are you planning a new pair of glasses?

[@functionalvanconversion4284]

Were going to get some of these for land here in the UE😢

[@heisengarg]

Hey, what happens when the ocean gets wicked in the time of storm. Does all the plastic collected get washed away? Did you face any cyclone yet?

[@Normski2009]

besides asking countries to support, order the plastic producers/fishing industries to engage in this system/cleanup

[@shadowmancer7040]

Wouldn't it make sense to dump the bag onto the devk and resume dragging while sorting the "catch" into the bins/clearing the deck?

[@civilape]

What plans do Ocean Cleanup have for their own obsolesce, if successful in expanding and cleaning up the oceans

[@willdobson79]

❤

[@michaelsauer2000]

I wonder if fishing and commercial companies would help pay to get rid of the nets. Those nets really affect them when they get caught in rudders and other things.

[@TheCritterWindow]

Why not sort and grind the plastic so you can have more onboard storage?

[@mboothy]

That would require recycling machinery (taking up space) and use more energy, not sure that would be a good enough trade off versus just bringing it back and doing it on land.

[@msmechanic]

Could you use the ocean current to charge the batteries required rather than solar power?

[@daynastenabaugh4234]

I think that the fishing industry should be responsible for funding a large portion of the clean up? Why doesn't the government hold them responsible for their portion of the clean up costs?

[@russellbeach3207]

Could we see a Major car manufcturer using some of this recycled plastic ? Or any other large scale company? Sending lots of love.

[@dakaodo]

Generally, no. Maybe in some specific uses where quality control is less of an issue. I've seen a few industry articles that discuss problems of recycled plastic, especially plastic that has been exposed to significant UV such as decades-old plastic recovered from international waters. The plastic becomes brittle or otherwise loses certain characteristics necessary in manufacturing, and when these mixed recovered plastics are recycled into usable form (plastic pellets), their quality varies greatly. Not good for reliable forming into new products that require consistent or precise characteristics and behavior during production. This is one factor in why Ocean Cleanup used recycled plastic to make sunglasses to sell as fundraiser merchandise -- small and simple shapes, end use is very lightweight, so few heavy stresses or demands will be expected of the material.

[@GurungyNoHamuster]

Ocean plastic is used by some big companies and it can be made into a range of good quality products.

[@russellbeach3207]

Thank you for your reply. Seems like it would be benificial for a big company to support this. Oh Ikea LOL@@dakaodo

[@alcohol_soju_drunk1218]

회수된 플라스틱은 녹여서 기름으로 만들수 있습니다. 그걸 경매에 붙히면 좋겠군요

[@djjamison6548]

Is there things from plane wrecks or ships? Have you ever gotten body parts?

[@danmoore3224]

Hemp seed oil polymers make a nontoxic biodegradable plastic that is also stronger! Time for change to save Mother Earth & ourselves!

[@michele7607]

And here comes the question that has been coming up to my mind : what happens for the countless live animals who get caught in those debris ?

[@ldqa2737]

What are you doing to stop the pollution at its source? (Dumping in rivers, canals, etc)

[@BalboaBaggins]

You can ask this question to anyone, might be better to ask it to politicians and companies first.

[@ldqa2737]

@@BalboaBaggins someone with visibility needs to bring it to the governing bodies. Everyday citizens won't be heard.

[@chrisbailey5055]

Space is not cluttered, low earth orbit is cluttered...but yeah, sending stuff to space as disposal is nonsensical.

[@susanhawkins3045]

So agree. Yeah me here messed the earth up so don’t want to mess space up. We have found out what mistakes we made to the earth why do it to space.

[@dakaodo]

As with any comment section, some of the questions they showed were naive. If you know how much it costs to send a kg of payload to space, you can laugh. But there are literally billions of people on the planet who have never thought about it. Maybe some of them are 5 years old, and maybe some are 50. But I for one don't know some things that many people know, like how to fix the alternator in my car, avoid overcooking a pork chop, and many other things both simple and complex. So I figure other people out there have the same issue about topics I do know. Even the concept of not perpetuating an unsustainable practice in space is something a person may not yet understand. It may take far more time to use the encounter as a teaching moment, than to point and laugh, but one of those actions has a higher chance of building understanding. The solution could be something quick to make too-big concepts like "planetary waste" and "space" more relatable to a layman or child: "You have too many things to keep in your house. Why not buy another house?" (may not be useful if talking to a billionaire) "You just finished lunch at home. The trashcan is full. Why not fly to another country to throw away the trash?"

[@jcklazur8095]

Qu'est-ce que l'on pourra faire avec les microparticules de plastique tombées au fond des océans et des rivières ?... mais deja le travail accompli est remarquable, de grande ampleur. Jck

[@Dysiode]

KIA should make limited edition vehicle interiors using plastic you've collected!

[@onamuir4985]

🥰🥰🥰

[@I_Am_Servant]

How efficient is it really to go and fish out hydrocarbons out of the sea while burning hydrocarbons? lets see a ship run off plastic to offset fule usage

[@Yotrek]

Assuming the goal of removing all plastic in a 10 year timespan, how many boats would be needed? 1,000? 10,000? 100,000? 1m boats?

[@sha_lyn3683]

I wonder if they have come across marine life entangled in debris and if they are able to rescue them if they do

[@TheBookDoctor]

The question I have is about rates: how many tons per day on average can your systems extract, and how many tons per day of new plastic comes into the GPGP? How many systems will you need before we are "winning"?

[@rozelynjenkins1811]

I was appalled that someone thought sending plastic to storage was space. That's crazy!!! We have enough radioactive space junk we can't clean up.

[@calvinsfujii1493]

Is all the collected pieces of plastic recycled?