Today, the Gifted Four felt very important indeed as they had been given an assignment by the MysticLord himself. They were sent to the human realm to look for an efficient way of stopping plastic waste from reaching the world’s oceans.
Verum and her friends found the solution in Italy! A company called Mold has invented a tool called River Cleaning. Studies show that it can collect about 85% of the waste passing through the river.
“But why is it important to collect the waste passing through the river?” said Scorch, “Weren’t we talking about plastic waste in the oceans?”
“From where do you think plastic waste reaches the oceans?” said Verum, “Every year, at least 10 million tonnes of plastic waste ends up in the oceans. Of this, about 80% comes from rivers. Rivers flow through megacities like Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, and Shanghai, collecting waste.
It collects in the ocean forming plastic islands. The biggest plastic island is the Great Pacific garbage patch. It takes 20 years for plastic to reach such islands. You must know the impact of this on marine life. It’s disastrous!”
“Oh, now I get it,” said Scorch, “How does the River Cleaning tool work?”
“It consists of a series of buoys spinning because of the natural current of the river. These are anchored to the river bed at the bottom of the river. They form a diagonal line,” said Verum, “When they spin gently, garbage in the river is redirected towards a collection point at the shore. Different kinds of waste can be collected through this tool, including tiny particles, plastic bottles, and even oil.”
“Verum, what about the boats that will want to pass through the river? Won’t this tool block them?” said Orak.
“No! Boats can pass through the buoys at a slow speed. Once it passes, the anchor will pull these buoys back into place,” explained Verum, “It is a low-cost solution that can be used on a bigger scale too.”
“Whoa, the MysticLord will definitely find it interesting,” said Felix.