AkzoNobel, Ocean Cleanup join forces to combat marine litter
AkzoNobel announced that it has joined forces with the Ocean Cleanup, in order to help turn the tide on marine pollution. The partnership involves the company providing biocide-free coatings technology for all the devices and equipment used by the Ocean Cleanup for the next five years.
The coatings will be on the specially designed floating clean-up system, which will collect the waste plastic. These biocide-free Intersleek products are already being used to help make the shipping industry more sustainable by reducing fuel consumption, cutting emissions and lowering the costs of operation.
“Working together with a true global force in sustainable coatings technology will ensure that our systems remain protected, even under the most extreme conditions. Another benefit of the partnership is team AkzoNobel’s involvement in the Volvo Ocean Race, which will help increase global awareness of the urgent need to remove plastic from our aquatic ecosystems”, said Boyan Slat, CEO and founder of The Ocean Cleanup.
The collaboration follows on from the recent announcement that the company will also be an official sustainability partner of the next Volvo Ocean Race. This will include organizing a series of Ocean Summits focused on bringing science, politics, government and sport together in an effort to act positively on the issue of marine litter.
Founded in 2013, the Ocean Cleanup aims to remove half the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the space of just five years. It employs U-shaped screens to channel floating plastic to a central point. The concentrated plastic can then be extracted and shipped to shore for recycling into durable products.
