Malaysia and The Ocean Cleanup Extend Cooperation

PUTRAJAYA, November 27, 2023 — The Ocean Cleanup, the international non-profit project with the mission of ridding the world’s oceans of plastic, and the Government of Malaysia have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation, expanding and strengthening their collaboration on reducing plastic pollution in rivers in Malaysia. The Memorandum was signed in Putrajaya by Dr. Ching Thoo a/l Kim, Secretary General of the Malaysian Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change and Boyan Slat, Founder & CEO of The Ocean Cleanup and was witnessed by His Excellency Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change of Malaysia.

In the Memorandum, the Government of Malaysia and The Ocean Cleanup will endeavor to promote and develop cooperation in the removal and management of river plastic waste in Malaysia, and therefore the reduction of ocean inflows of plastic. The two parties will cooperate closely, sharing technical knowledge, data, and experience to contribute to this shared ambition. “Through this collaboration, the technological prowess, research capabilities, and global experience of The Ocean Cleanup can be leveraged to enhance our ability to address the multifaceted challenges posed by plastic waste. We earnestly hope that we will be able to catalyse change and set new benchmarks in the global fight against plastic pollution by joining forces,” said Minister Nik Nazmi.

This commitment to tackling plastic pollution together marks another step forward in The Ocean Cleanup’s mission to rid the oceans of plastic and demonstrates the dedication of the Government of Malaysia to fight pollution and to provide a cleaner and healthier environment for the country’s citizens.

The Ocean Cleanup has worked actively in Malaysia since 2018, partnering with Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd (LLSB) to deploy two Interceptor Original river cleanup technologies in the Klang River. Interceptor 002 was installed in the river in 2019, while Interceptor 005 – the build and deployment of which were funded by the band Coldplay – has further helped to improve local cleanup efficiency, resulting in quicker and more scalable cleanup, since 2021.

“Malaysia has been at the heart of The Ocean Cleanup’s operations since 2018, and we’re thrilled to work with such dedicated partners and play an even greater role in tackling plastic pollution in Malaysian rivers,” said Boyan Slat, Founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup. “Preventing plastic pollution leaking to the sea from rivers is the most efficient way to clean our oceans and our coastlines, and we hope that other countries will take inspiration from what we’ve done here and see the exciting possibilities for their own communities and environments.”

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ABOUT THE OCEAN CLEANUP

The Ocean Cleanup is an international non-profit organization that develops and scales technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic. They aim to achieve this goal through a dual strategy: intercepting in rivers to stop the inflow and cleaning up what has already accumulated in the ocean. For the latter, The Ocean Cleanup develops and deploys large-scale systems to efficiently concentrate the plastic for periodic removal. This plastic is tracked and traced through DNV’s chain of custody model to certify claims of origin when recycling it into new products. To curb the tide via rivers, The Ocean Cleanup has developed Interceptor™ Solutions to halt and extract riverine plastic before it reaches the ocean. Founded in 2013 by Boyan Slat, The Ocean Cleanup now employs a broadly multi-disciplined team of approximately 140. The foundation is headquartered in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and opened its first regional office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2023.

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