At age sixteen, a single trip to Greece ignited in Boyan Slat a loaded question – what if the oceans could clean themselves? Eight years, $31 million, and several prototypes later, Slat and his team at the Ocean Cleanup Project are nearing the first deployment of their full-size mechanism to collect floating ocean plastic and debris with what Boyan likens to a giant floating Pac-Man that eats plastic.
Yesterday, Slat appeared on Joe Rogan explaining his early inspiration, the nuances of the global plastic epidemic, and what he and his team hope to do about it. All while, it should be pointed out, drinking water from a plastic bottle. But, hey, nobody’s perfect.
Slat’s been equated to the young Dutch Elon Musk of ocean plastic pollution, but he and his concept aren’t without their critics. They argue that the Ocean Cleanup Project essentially focuses on the wrong area, that it’s bad for the environment, and that focusing on floating plastic doesn’t target the debris that sinks. Still, it’s much easier to be a critic than to go out and raise $31 million and do something differently.
