TheYachtMarket presents Ocean Saviour eco-concept

TheYachtMarket has unveiled details of its Ocean Saviour project, a self-powering 70-metre (230-foot) tri-deck clean-up vessel, engineered to find and recycle plastic from the ocean.

Joining the global effort to combat ocean pollution, the vessel will be engineered to locate, retrieve and recycle plastic, and aims to remove five tonnes of plastic from the ocean per day.

Richard W. Roberts, CEO and co-founder of TheYachtMarket, said, “It’s staggering to think that there is currently over five trillion pieces of plastic in the ocean which is having a huge detrimental impact on our ecosystem and the ocean’s biodiversity.

“It’s essential that we remove plastic before it breaks down into microplastics and, through Ocean Saviour, we aim to help eradicate the ocean of this problem.”

The concept designs were unveiled at TheYachtMarket’s stand at Southampton Boat Show. The design shows large arm-like collection systems at the side and front of the vessel that allow it to draw in plastic from the ocean. She works by collecting plastic waste, which is finely chopped, milled and processed using plasma gasification, with the end product becoming fuel for the yacht.

The main deck is home to two 12-metre containers, which will offer research laboratory facilities or VIP accommodation and bulk storage area, aft of the crew quarters. The curved front windows are reflective of a superyacht in its design, to lessen the impact of rogue waves, green water and windage, and offer maximum visibility for the crew. The wheelhouse is located on the third deck, which will also house the main crew areas and helipad.

Her designers recommended a large-scale catamaran as the most economical and stable option on the water. In the event of a disaster, the design also allows it to be chartered by relief rescue organisations, as it is fuel efficient, fast and stable.

Dr. Andrew Baglin, of Multiphase Design, commented, "The Great Pacific Garbage Patch contains an estimated 80,000 tonnes of plastic. A single Ocean Saviour vessel aims to clear five tonnes of plastic per day, that’s nearly two kilotonnes per year. This would mean that one Ocean Saviour vessel would take 40 years to clean up the Pacific gyre using plasma technology, which can therefore be scaled if there was more than one vessel in operation.”

The designer behind Ocean Saviour, Ricky Smith, added, “Ocean Saviour proposes an environmental revolution whereby we, as a community, undertake the immense and urgent task of physically collecting the plastics from the oceans and waterways. This is a crusade for the liberation of our oceans from the waste created by both our brilliant technology and our disregard of the oceans.”

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