A new interceptor is under construction that could finally keep the Gulf of Honduras clean from plastics and other trash. The Ocean Cleanup began working toward this goal in 2019, and with the deployment of the Interceptor 021, the group believes it may finally reach that goal.
The Gulf of Honduras is a beautiful part of the western Caribbean Ocean that stretches from Honduras in the south up north along the coasts of Guatemala and part of Belize, per Encyclopedia Britannica. Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula is also north of these waters. Thousands of people's livelihoods depend on the fishing and tourism industries in this area.
Unfortunately, the Gulf of Honduras and the waterways that feed it are also among the most plastic-polluted places on the planet. The connected Rio Motagua basin alone is believed to be contributing around 2% of global plastic pollution to the world's oceans, not to mention the wildlife negatively affected by the pollution.
It's estimated that roughly 40 million pounds of plastic waste enter the river every year, largely due to the lack of waste disposal infrastructure in the country.
A large percentage of the waste comes from Guatemala City, the capital and a city of around 1 million people, but that has been reported as over 3 million people for its metropolitan area, based on United Nations data. One of the Motagua's tributaries, the Las Vacas River, runs near the capital city and to the Motagua, carrying loads of plastic pollution with it, according to the organization.
So it only makes sense that The Ocean Cleanup constructed an interceptor, the Interceptor 006, on the Las Vacas River in May 2023. The Interceptor 006 is set up close to Guatemala City.
"With it, we have since prevented over [22,000,000 pounds] of trash from flowing to the Gulf of Honduras," The Ocean Cleanup website states. "However, our job is not done yet."
Still, The Ocean Cleanup estimates it has removed 60-70% of the pollution.
The Interceptor 021 is being deployed at the mouth of the Motagua to catch the remaining trash not captured by the Interceptor 006, along with any other trash that ends up in the river between the two interceptors.
The 021 will be much larger and stronger than the 006 because it's expected to have to deal with faster river currents as well as impacts from tree trunks floating in the river. In fact, the Interceptor 021 will be the largest ever deployed by The Ocean Cleanup to date.
The Ocean Cleanup hopes to have the Interceptor 021 in place before the end of the rainy season, which is normally after October, and it is also when the flow is heaviest.
While these projects don't confront the problem at its source, they provide relief for those living near the coast, especially those who depend on the fishing and tourism industries.
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