Case: Aarhus Municipality

SeaProtectorOne was installed just before Aarhus River flows into Aarhus Bay, as part of Aarhus Municipality's Plastics Strategy 2020–2025. As it runs through the centre of Aarhus, Aarhus River has undeniably carried much of the city's waste directly into the sea. SeaProtectorOne should reduce that.

In total, SeaProtectorOne collected around 63,000 bits of waste in one year from its position at the end of Aarhus River; waste that would previously have ended up in the sea and been broken down into harmful microplastics was instead captured and recycled as far as possible. Aarhus Municipality was extremely satisfied with the result and the effect that SeaProtectorOne had on the environment in and around the river.

SeaProtectorOne is an important part of Aarhus Municipality's overall plastics strategy, and has proved to be not only effective but also practical. The container only had to be emptied of waste once per day at most, and that not only included expected items such as plastic cups and empty bottles, but also fire extinguishers, clothes, disco balls, etc. All of which could have polluted the world's oceans for decades, but which SeaProtectorOne was able to capture and remove safely.

At the same time, SeaProtectorOne was an ideal solution for Aarhus Municipality in connection with the water traffic on Aarhus River. Kayakers and others could easily get past the system, which automatically “opened” for them without requiring a human operator. All in all, the process was a great success for Aarhus Municipality, who with this “small” effort showed a high level of co-responsibility for the discharge of waste into the world's oceans from Denmark's second largest city.