Plastic Origins: how to clean the ocean with your smartphone

For several years now, Sufrider Foundation Europe has been commited to protecting the world’s oceans. Recently, they have developed the smartphone app Plastic Origins to help reduce water pollution.

Believe it or not it is now possible to clean up the world’s oceans from your smartphone. An app has been released as a result of a project uniting citizens, scientists, associations and businesses. Plastic Origins has been launched by Sufrider in an effort to involve everyone in the fight to reduce water pollution.

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Currently, 80% of waste ending up in the ocean comes from rivers. Upon reading this, Sufrider Europe wanted to help fix the root of the problem. As part of their new app, it is possible to map out polluted waterways by recording areas containing waste. This map will then make the most polluted areas easier to identify and treat.

An app created with artificial intelligence

Available on iOS and Android, Plastic Origins compiles all data inputted by users. All you have to do is log a video of the riverbank with the waste and the app’s algorithim is clever enough to take care of the rest. It detects, categorises, locates and records all the rubbish in the video.

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If there is only a small amount of waste by the river, it is possible to enter the description yourself without filming a video. Simply open the app and select the location and type of rubbish. No matter how you spend time outdoors, whilst looking after your own well-being, you can help protect the oceans’ too.