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Year in Review: The Ocean Cleanup Continues to Break Records

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Another year, another record trash haul. 

In 2025 we removed over 25 million kilograms of trash from aquatic environments, bringing our total overall catch to over 45 million kilograms. This massive haul is the result of years of research, data-driven decision-making, and commitment to implementing responsible solutions adapted to local contexts. 

This year, a major focus behind the scenes has been to ensure all our processes are optimized and our ocean and river technologies operate as efficiently as possible. But what did that look like? 

Watch our year-end recap video

2025 in Brief 

 Reaching our goal of removing 90% of all floating plastic from the ocean by 2040 requires a comprehensive solution. One that includes not only extraction of legacy plastic from the ocean, and the interception of plastic waste in rivers, but also the targeted removal of the pollution already present in near-shore environments through coastal sweeps, as well as leveraging our research in marine pollution to inform international policy. 

 Research which continues to set new standards, as well as involve citizen scientists keen to participate in the world’s largest cleanup – a cleanup that is growing in scale. At the United Nations Oceans Conference in Nice this year, we announced the next step towards reaching our goal: the 30 Cities Program, which will tackle up to a third of all plastic pollution entering the ocean from some of the world’s most polluting urban areas.  

 Our focus on efficiency and responsible solutions also extends to waste management. We continued to work closely with local authorities, partners, and communities in the countries we are deployed to create long-lasting impact.  

2025 in pictures

And if you’d rather not read through everything, we’ve put together the highlights of our 2025 in pictures – a little trip down memory lane.

Together with our local partner, we have inaugurated a new sorting facility on the banks of the Klang river in Malaysia, where the trash is intercepted and sorted immediately.
In late September, our research team sailed to the GPGP to release ghost net trackers to help us learn more about plastic behaviors inside the gyres.
The last batch of our catch in the GPGP has been successfully sorted, shipped, processed and recycled in pellets which are now ready to be transformed into meaningful products.
Late August, we published a video recap of the work our Ocean team has been doing in order to improve our offshore operation in the GPGP sustainably through hotspot hunting.
INC5.2, plastic pollution, plastic treaty, 30 cities,
During the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, last June, we announced our strategy to tackle one third of riverine pollution worldwide by 2030. We will deploy our Interceptor technology in 30 of the most polluting cities.
We have always worked to develop a solution that would create more impact than causing damages. In May, our Environmental and Social Affairs Director, Dr Matthias Egger, released a peer reviewed Net Environmental Benefit Assessment which proved that cleaning up the GPGP has more environmental benefits than costs.
Last May, following repairs due to extreme weather events, Interceptor 020 was back at work intercepting plastic in the Cisadane river in Indonesia.
To rid the marine environment from trash, we must not only focus on stopping inflow but also tackling legacy trash that is already in the environment prior to our operation. For this reason, we began organizing coastal sweeps with local partners and volunteers, which remove trash accumulated on the coast.
We deployed Interceptor 016 in Balmagie Gully last March - the ninth addition to the squad of Interceptors deployed in Kingston Bay, Jamaica.
Thanks to our partnership with Marea Verde we were able to deploy Interceptor 022 in Rio Abajo. The partnership aims to target seven basins inside the city to stop trash getting into the Gulf of Panama.

New Year, Same Mission 

 The records we have set throughout 2025 were made possible thanks to the continued support of our followers and partners. Together, we are turning the tide on plastic pollution. Our collective attention is now on 2026, a year that promises to deliver even more deployments, trash removed, and positive impact – so make sure to stay updated on our progress!