A Beginner’s Guide • Updates • The Ocean Cleanup – GWC Mag

What will happen to System 002?

System 002 hasn’t gone away: it’s evolved into System 03.

System 002 was extremely successful in the GPGP, extracting hundreds of thousands of kilograms of plastic, and was transformed into System 03 during a gradual transition (see our July 2022 video) whereby elements of System 002 were replaced, upgraded and tested in the field. This transition led to the expansion of the wings to the full length with deeper reaching screens, and the final component upgrades in August 2023. At that point, System 03 was complete and ready for deployment.

What about the future? Can System 03 clean the entire GPGP?

We intend to continue trialing and optimizing System 03 during its deployment – just as we did with previous iterations, and those learnings will continue to influence us. But System 03 can’t clean the GPGP alone – a cleanup this gigantic needs a fleet (we calculate that around a dozen systems would do it). We believe System 03 can make a significant impact on plastic pollution in the Pacific, while becoming the blueprint for the fleet we need to finish the job.

Ocean plastic pollution is a complex and global problem with many sources, causes and potential solutions. We aim to solve this problem with a dual strategy: intercepting plastic in rivers around the world to stop the inflow, while tackling the largest accumulations of plastic in the oceans. We’re starting with the biggest – the GPGP – but we’re already looking at how our systems can tackle the other garbage patches around the world.

Finally – what about a nickname? We’ve had Wilson, and then Jenny – what do we call System 03?

System 03 certainly does have a nickname, and we’re grateful for the thousands of suggestions – take a look at Boyan’s big reveal here…