Test run of marine debris clean-up in Europe.

24. January 2022

Test run of marine debris clean-up in Europe.

January 24, 2022

– Testing under realistic conditions is crucial for us to be able to achieve our goal of offering the world an efficient system for collecting marine debris from the sea surface.Through great partnership and exceptional support, we are now ready to take the next important step, says Project Manager Terje Olav Hansen in LoVeMar AS at Fiskebøl.

The company has recently been granted funding for a comprehensive test program through Handelens Miljøfond and Innovation Norway. The tests will be carried out in particularly exposed areas in the European part of the Mediterranean. LoVeMar has collaborated with other companies in the Arena cluster MRC (Marine Recycling Cluster) to develop the system, and will especially highlight Selstad and Salt Lofoten (SALT) located in Svolvær, Melbu Systems and Momek located at Melbu, as well as Nordlaks and Egga Utvikling.MRC have for a long time been working actively to achieve an international pilot project within marine debris clean-up – We had initially planned to carry out testing in Asia as the most polluted sea areas are there. However, due to the pandemic we have changed our plans, says Hansen. Four relevant locations in Europe have now been assessed, and the company will make a final decision in the coming months.

– The previous test was performed during the winter of 2020 at Fiskebøl. The results at the time were very promising with 98% of the marine plastic waste that was in the water was collected. SALT observed the test and documented the results. When we now test in the south of Europe, we bring with us a larger sweeper, MDS 450, which has been through several revisions. The goal is to develop a system that can clean up marine debris with great efficiency, says CEO Michal Reinholdtsen. The concept has generated interest at REV Ocean, which has chosen to join the project group. – REV Ocean has with great interest read the results achieved by LoVeMar AS when it comes to collecting marine plastic waste on the sea surface. We would like to contribute to the implementation of the pilot project, says Nina Jensen, CEO of REV Ocean AS. – SALT is an important partner for LoVeMar in analysis, documentation and knowledge dissemination, and is a leading environmental competency in Norway within plastic waste. – This project is important for the development and testing of clean-up technology in heavily polluted areas, such as some rivers and harbor outlets, says Carl Höjman, who is a Specialist Leader in marine litter in SALT. – There is a great need for clean-up in many places in the world, and we think it is very exciting to support a solution that can be used to clean up both at sea, in port areas and in larger rivers. It is also great that equipment originally developed for oil spill response can form the foundation for equipment that will now be used for clearing plastic waste. Such synergy effects offer many benefits, says Therese Fosholt Moe, Project Manager at Handelens Miljøfond.

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