A new pilot project is underway in Belgium to test an underwater pump designed to protect rivers and oceans from plastic pollution.
Jan de Nul is testing the device on the Dender river in the city of Aalst, in a collaboration between the company, the city, and the Flemish waterway authority De Vlaamse Waterweg.
The underwater pump was developed by Clean Sea Solutions and continuously draws in water and waste, collecting the debris in a storage container. The city of Aalst is responsible for collecting and processing the gathered waste.
Jan de Nul noted that an estimated 70 to 80 per cent of all ocean plastic reaches the sea via rivers, and the new trial aims to find an effective way to combat this problem at the source.
The underwater pump can operate fully autonomously, but for even greater impact, it is being combined with another type of the company’s remotely operated vessels which are usually deployed for seabed mapping.
These are equipped with robotic arms to pick up floating waste from the water’s surface and bring it to the pump.
If the pilot project proves successful, Jan de Nul said it plans to deploy the combined system on its projects worldwide to remove waste and contribute to cleaner waterways.