Seabins clean Nyhavn canal area in Copenhagen

Floating containers are expected to suck up almost two tonnes of rubbish every year

As a city surrounded by water, Copenhagen is a real joy for swimmers thanks to its urban beaches, waterfront swimming areas and one of the cleanest city harbor waters in the world.

Living up to its good reputation, the Danish capital is taking steps to keep its waters clean from microplastics, cigarette butts and other rubbish. To this end, the popular Nyhavn canal area on the Copenhagen waterfront received a helping hand in late November when two new floating garbage bins were positioned into the canal by the city authority in collaboration with the WWF and canal tour boat operator Stromma, informed The Copenhagen Post.

The Seabins suck litter into a catch bag using a submersible water pump that has a capacity of 25,000 liters per hour. 

One Seabin can collect around 1.825 tonnes of waste every year

The Seabins have an ‘oil pad’, so when the water is pumped out again, even tiny plastic microfibers could be captured. In total, one Seabin is expected to collect around 1.825 tonnes of waste on annual base. The innovative devices can hold up to 1.5 kilos and the city expects to empty them between 3 and 7 times every week.

The most often caught objects are cigarettes butts (29% of all rubbish caught), plastic fragments (28%), food wrappers (26%), foam particles (5%), bottle caps (4%), straws (2%), and cans and plastic bags (1%).

The Seabin is equipped with a pump that vacuums and throws out water, creating a decompression effect at the entrance of the basket. It can work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, collecting microplastics and microfibres that are invisible to the human eye, without interfering with the port activities.