Henry and I just came up with an idea of Lobster Traps. Lobsters come into the trap but can't get out. We can use the same mechanism for ocean trash instead of lobsters. The reason we came up with this idea is because both Henry and I were worried about how the boat can hold the trash and not letting it go. If we can successfully put the lobster trap mechanism into our boat, it will be functioning as we expected.
Trash accumulates in 5 ocean garbage patches, the largest one being the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, located between Hawaii and California. If left to circulate, the plastic will impact our ecosystems, health, and economies. Solving it requires a combination of closing the source, and cleaning up what has already accumulated in the ocean. The Ocean Cleanup project develops an advanced technology to clean up 50% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch every 5 years.
The Ocean Cleanup is developing a passive system, using the natural oceanic forces to catch and concentrate the plastic. Both the plastic and system are being carried by the current.
However, wind and waves propel only the system, as the floater sits just above the water surface, while the plastic is primarily just beneath it. The system thus moves faster than the plastic, allowing the plastic to be captured.
The baleen system works by a whale opening its mouth underwater and taking in water. The whale then pushes the water out, and animals such as krill are filtered by the baleen and remain as food source for the whale. This is how whales filter out water. This definitely can be a system that Henry and I can work on our boat.
