Support The Ocean Cleanup directly.
DonateThe largest cleanup in history — removing plastic from our oceans and rivers.
The stated mission is to clean up ninety percent of floating ocean plastic by 2040. In 2025 they also reached the point where almost all trash flowing down Guatemala's Rio Motagua — the most plastic-polluted river on Earth — is being intercepted before it reaches the Gulf of Honduras.
The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit founded by Boyan Slat in 2013, with a team of about 200 people across more than a dozen countries.
Two fronts: large floating systems that extract legacy plastic from ocean garbage patches, and solar-powered Interceptors that catch plastic in rivers before it reaches the sea.
Active since 2013. In 2025 alone they removed more than 27 million kilograms (27,385,000 kg) — their biggest year ever. Total catch passed 60 million kilograms in July 2026 and stands at more than 65 million kilograms as of October 2026.
Source: The Ocean Cleanup, 2025 in review
Source: The Ocean Cleanup homepage (65M+ kg, checked Oct 9, 2026)
Ocean systems work the Great Pacific Garbage Patch — the largest accumulation, between Hawaii and California. River Interceptors run in about a dozen countries across Asia, Central America, the Caribbean, and the United States.
Plastic harms marine wildlife, breaks into microplastics, and persists for decades. Cleanup protects the water we depend on.
Support The Ocean Cleanup directly.
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