Penarth Marina joins fight against ocean plastics

Boatfolk’s Penarth Marina has installed its first Seabin, joining the fight against ocean plastics.

The innovative floating plastic waste basket has been sponsored by UK-headquartered consulting engineering company, Mott MacDonald.

Supporting the team at Penarth Marina that already gathers rubbish from around the harbour, the Seabin will provide an additional capacity to collect up to 20kg of waste per day. This is said to equate to approximately 90,000 carrier bags, 50,000 plastic bottles, 35,700 disposable coffee cups or 117,000 plastic utensils per year.

“At boatfolk we take our environmental responsibilities very seriously,” says Stuart Jones, Penarth Marina manager. “As a boating business the coastline is our lifeline, and we need to protect it for the generations to come. Marinas and ports are the perfect place to start helping clean our oceans.

“We are thrilled to have installed a Seabin at Penarth Marina. We will work closely with Mott MacDonald to identify what material is finding its way into the watercourse, why this is, and how to minimise it. Most of the UK’s Seabins have been installed in coastal locations. The Seabin at Penarth will be one of few where we can look at the issues of microplastics in a freshwater location.”

The Seabin works by moving up and down with the tides collecting all floating rubbish. Water is sucked in from the surface with a submersible pump capable of displacing 25,000 litres per hour and passes through a catch bag inside. The water is then pumped back out leaving the litter and debris trapped inside until it can be disposed of properly. The Seabin can also skim the surface for oils and pollutants as well as microplastics.

Joanne Bates, principal ecologist of Mott MacDonald, comments: “Having raised the profile of this technology, there is now a real impetus to continue installing the Seabins across the country. We are encouraging this through our Corporate Social Responsibility funds, collaboration with boatfolk and other organisations.”

The new Seabin at Penarth Marina was supplied by Inland and Coastal Marina Systems, the official UK and Ireland supplier of the Seabin.