![]() This means we can combine our efforts – The Ocean Cleanup’s Interceptors can reduce plastic emissions and provide data on where our cleanup technology can have maximum impact, while UNDP can assist us by building up local support, while also assisting governments and contributing to policy changes to ensure that countries are able to develop their societies without sacrificing their environments to pollution. Under this new deal with UNDP, The Ocean Cleanup will provide technology, expertise and data monitoring while UNDP will help find opportunities for collaboration and co-development within the country itself. To truly rid the oceans of plastic, we need to combine downstream efforts with midstream solutions – concerning waste management, recycling and circular economy, for example, and upstream solutions, like those relating to plastic production and government policy (for examples, laws regulating plastic packaging). However, these are downstream solutions – solving the problem after the problem has already developed. Together, The Ocean Cleanup and UNDP have the opportunity to become the leading source of factual and up-to-date information on riverine plastic emissions, In a similar way, riverine plastic emissions will become a central data point in the fight against plastic pollution. In the battle against climate change, it has become essential to monitor carbon emissions because knowing this figure means we can check whether our solutions are really working and confirm that we’re moving in the right direction, and how quickly. Plastic emissions should be seen in a similar context as carbon emissions. Monitoring and data gathering is now an integral part of our Interceptor river deployments, and monitoring plastic emissions from rivers means we can measure the impact of anti-plastic pollution policies and helps ensure stronger accountability of decisions. While our Interceptors are deployed in rivers, we are also monitoring how much plastic is flowing into the ocean. Our Interceptors can also play an equally vital role in preventing new plastic emissions from reaching the ocean and helping stop the problem from worsening.īut we’re not just cleaning plastic we’re monitoring plastic too. ![]() ![]() We know that cleanup is non-negotiable: ongoing efforts to clean the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) are essential to remove the legacy plastic which is already there, and will remain there indefinitely unless physically removed – all the time degrading into microplastics. At The Ocean Cleanup, we know that we can’t solve the problem of ocean plastic alone. However, this new partnership is about more than that. Interceptor 004 was upgraded in late 2022 with a longer barrier for greater river coverage, and we expect this initial project with UNDP to continue improving throughout 2023. Together, we have helped Interceptor 004 remove over 150,000 kg of trash from the Rio Ozama. UNDP has been our partner in Dominican Republic from the beginning, helping us collaborate with local waste operators and coordinate maintenance work – particularly vital during the COVID-19 pandemic. We’ve seen this already in Dominican Republic, where Interceptor 004 has been operational in the Rio Ozama since 2021. Whenever an organization like The Ocean Cleanup wants to bring innovation or technology to a new community, UNDP can connect them with local and national governments, community representatives, youth leaders and commercial partners to help get deployments off the ground. HOW WILL THE OCEAN CLEANUP AND UNDP BE WORKING TOGETHER? This is in complete alignment with our mission – making The Ocean Cleanup and UNDP a powerful team. It also works to raise awareness and guide governments and authorities towards more sustainable policies, such as those concerning plastic pollution and waste management. UNDP can provide this assistance, meaning we can get on with the job of cleaning plastic.īut that’s not the main role of UNDP around the world. Introducing new technology and intervening to restore a country’s natural environment, as we do when deploying our Interceptors in rivers – requires a huge amount of regulatory and administrative work, often in an unfamiliar country where on-the-ground expertise is essential. UNDP has become an invaluable partner to many organizations around the world. UNDP is active in over 170 countries, assisting governments and communities with a focus on sustainable development, good governance, and climate and disaster resilience. Headquartered in New York City, UNDP helps countries achieve positive and sustainable development through sharing of knowledge, expertise and resources. ![]() ![]() The United Nations Development Programme ( UNDP) was founded in 1965 and is the UN’s global development network. ![]()
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