Analysis:
The Great Lakes provide drinking water for about 40 million people. More than 22 million pounds of plastic pollution end up in the Lakes every year, according to the Rochester Institute of Technology. If this plastic isn’t removed, it eventually breaks down into smaller pieces called microplastics. Removing plastics from the Lakes, however, is tedious and needs to be done nearly around the clock, making it difficult to keep up with the pollution using manpower alone. Deploying autonomous robots that can work around the clock is a great solution. Not only do these robots remove plastics from beaches and waterways, they’re also able to give us greater insights into how effective cleanup projects are by providing more data on the water the robots are cleaning. – Brianna Wessling