Gold Coast City Marina & Shipyard (GCCM) and Seabin Group have partnered together to hold Queensland’s first demonstration of the unique floating Seabin technology to remove plastic from the ocean.
Onsite at GCCM on Tuesday 17 July 2018 from 11am to 1pm, Government officials, community leaders, marina operators and the general public were given the opportunity to witness this ground-breaking technology remove debris from the local waterway.
GCCM has an outstanding record in leading environmental initiatives and programmes for which they have received multiple awards, including best Environmental Initiative by a Marina, making the facility an Australian industry leader and a natural partner for the Seabin Group.
“We are committed to best environmental practice and innovation; the Seabin Project is the epitome of both of these attributes not to mention Australian ingenuity. We are proud to have hosted the first Queensland demonstration day,” stated GCCM’s CEO, Mr Trenton Gay.
The brainchild of Mr Peter Ceglinksi and Mr Andrew Turon, the Seabin Group has invested, created and developed a unique ‘floating debris interception device’ to collect rubbish, oil, fuel and detergents from waterways with the ultimate goal of pollution-free oceans for future generations. Each Seabin can catch an estimated 1.5 kilograms of floating matter per day including microplastics down to 2mm whilst also skimming the surface for oils and pollutants.
Launched in 2017, the Seabin technology has attracted great attention worldwide winning many awards including the prestigious European Design Awards as well as this year’s design award for social impact by Good Design Australia.
Currently, Seabins are manufactured in France due to the overwhelming demand in the European market however, the group is seeing increasing interest in Australia and is working towards opening a headquarters here to further develop the technology. In the interim, the Seabin Group will act as a sale and distributor for Queensland with the first units arriving in November in preparation for the peak summer period.
A 2014 study found 5.25 trillion plastic particles were floating in the world’s oceans, with a particular concentration on Australia’s coastline. Furthermore, it is estimated eight million tonnes of plastics are added to the ocean each year. Due to plastic’s durability, the problem is will only increase.
Aside from the technology, the Seabin Group also place a great deal of effort into education and raising awareness and seek partnerships with likeminded, such as GCCM, to work towards cleaner and healthier oceans.
“Our strategy is multifaceted – working with partners who are leading by example; implementing new technologies; creating new legislation; and designing and conducting education programs globally. We hope this event with GCCM will lead into bigger and better projects with an aim for cleaner oceans,” said Mr Ceglinski, Co-Founder and CEO of the Seabin Group.
“The plastic epidemic in the ocean is well discussed and here is a very direct, simple and effective way GCCM can do its part to address it. At the official demonstration GCCM invited industry, media, government and those committed to clean waterways to challenge their current environmental initiatives and spread the word of this great technology,” stated Mr Luke McCaul, General Manager of Customer Experience at GCCM.
