Boyan Slat is just 21, but he's already developed a technology that could remove millions of pounds of plastic from our oceans.
In 2013, Slat, then only 19, founded The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit that aims to extract trash from oceans using a sophisticated system of floating barriers and nets. Basically, floating barriers are placed along currents where trash collects, which, once caught in the nets, will be removed and recycled.
A feasibility study conducted by the company estimates that a single one of these barriers could eliminate almost half of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch — about 154 million pounds of plastic — in just 10 years.
The company just announced that it has received full funding for its North Sea prototype test, which will begin this summer. The $1.7 million project was funded by marine contractor Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., the Dutch government, and one anonymous philanthropist.
The 328-foot-long prototype will be deployed in the Dutch North Sea for one year in order to test its performance in extreme-weather conditions.
The prototype and additional details about the North Sea test are slated to be revealed on June 22, according to a press release.
Here's a look at Slat's technology in action: