Island of plastic bottles richie owl. Floating island made of plastic bottles

), a TV program of terrestrial and ADSL-TV channels, the latest and most interesting news from the world of high technologies, the most original and amazing pictures from the Internet, a large archive of magazines for last years, appetizing recipes in pictures , informative . The section is updated daily. Always fresh versions the best free programs for everyday use in the section Essential programs . There is almost everything that is required for daily work. Start to gradually abandon pirated versions in favor of more convenient and functional free counterparts. If you still do not use our chat, we strongly advise you to get acquainted with it. You will find many new friends there. It is also the fastest and most efficient way to contact project administrators. The Antivirus Updates section continues to work - always up-to-date free updates for Dr Web and NOD. Didn't have time to read something? Full content the running line can be found at this link.

floating island of plastic bottles

Houseboats are no longer a rarity, they are a haven for romantics and eternal sailors, who at the same time do not want to live far from mainland. Rishi Sowa, for example, prefers to live in his floating residence, made from recycled plastic bottles. He did a great job - hundreds of thousands of bottles he recycled could end up in a landfill and slowly poison the environment. It took several years to build the house. And today it has been 3 years since Mr. Sosha moved in there.

To create a floating platform, Rishi collected plastic bottles and stuffed mesh bags made from processed fruits with them, then fastened them together. Now his home, an artificial island, is drifting near Isla Mujeres in the Caribbean.

After several months of sailing, the bottom was overgrown with corals and mollusks, which further strengthened the stability. On the island, strewn with a layer of earth, many plants grow: palm trees, cacti, spinach, tomatoes, melons, lemon trees, herbs and flowers.

As a true pioneer of this ecological project, Rishi tries to show WHAT we can do with waste. He believes that we can turn everything upside down. modern world creates (and destroys nature). Now he proposes to create a self-sustaining floating island Joysxee entirely from recycled or biodegradable materials and asks for everyone's help. You can support his project financially on the Kickstarter website (you can also read the details I accidentally missed there).

You can follow the development of events on the channel Youtube

Island of plastic bottles (34 photos)

Mr. Richie Sowa, who found an original way to use empty plastic bottles that have become the scourge of modern civilization. Richard built his new floating island out of plastic bottles. Spiral Island took 250,000 plastic bottles to build. A two-story house was erected on the island, three beaches, two ponds, gazebos, trees were planted and much more. Electricity for the needs of the inhabitants of the island is generated using solar panels.

Richard builds his new floating island out of plastic bottles (the old one was destroyed by Hurricane Emily).

An artificial island built from plastic bottles looks like a real island in the middle of the ocean, although it floats near the shore. Richard Owl had an old dream to have own island, but the young musician and artist did not have money to buy a real island, so he decided to create his own island from available materials.

The buoyancy was based on ordinary plastic bottles that they collected on the beaches and in nearby garbage containers, many local sellers and residents left empty bottles especially for them so that they could build and increase their island in size, so many bottles just floated in water, which simply washed ashore, thus at the same time they cleared the water area of ​​debris.

The first island was built a long time ago and constantly increased in size, a lot of time and effort was devoted, but the hurricane smashed the island into chips and separately floating bags of bottles, in general, little was left of the island after the hurricane, but Richard built new island which they expand as far as possible. The technology for building and expanding the island is quite simple,

We simply collect bottles in bags and tie them to a wooden frame, which we knock together from what we have, and then we lay sheets of plywood on the frame, cover the edges with stones and cement, and pour sand into the resulting "bath" creating a semblance of a coast, and earth for plants .

We add such new pieces of the island in a spiral and the island grows in a circle. Vegetation has been planted on the island, as well as two artificial ponds have been created, along the banks of which vegetation has been planted, creating the illusion of real ones. Perennial vegetation creates a natural coolness and shade on the island on hot days, creating the atmosphere of a real island.

Such islands also solve housing problems and allow you to live right on the water. We have established a life, we even have our own electricity from a solar panel, in general, there is everything you need for life here, and we are constantly improving the island. This second island became famous thanks to the ubiquitous journalists who glorified Richard, now tourists look at it. At that time, the size of the island in terms of area was more than 320 sq / m, and the number of bottles was more than 250 thousand pieces.

Scientists are also seriously interested in such islands, because the problem of floating fields with garbage in the form of plastic bottles in the ocean has been worrying for a long time, but this is an excellent material for creating artificial islands of any size, on which you can create entire settlements or tourist areas recreation. > >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

The problem of recycling plastic waste is a big headache for all mankind. Plastic does not rot, does not dissolve in water. IN developed countries it is allowed to be recycled, but it is impossible to do it again and again. And the planet is gradually covered with a layer of plastic waste, which is getting thicker. Entire plastic dumps are already floating in the middle of the oceans, threatening the lives of all marine creatures - from whales to plankton. What to do?

I want to live like the Aztecs!

A non-standard solution was proposed by British artist Richard Owl. He built a floating island out of discarded plastic bottles! Frankly, Richie, as Richard calls himself, did not initially set himself the global task of solving the problem of plastic recycling. A carpenter by profession, he retrained as a penniless artist and began to travel the world, trying to start new life after divorce. Eventually Richie Owl settled down in Mexico and there, reading about floating islands Aztecs, suddenly wanted to build about the same island. But how, from what? And suddenly - eureka! In 1996, while walking along a nudist beach in the Mexican village of San Pedro Pochutla, Richie noticed a huge amount of discarded plastic bottles. What if?… Gradually a plan emerged. The bottles will serve as a floating means for the island. They just need to be collected and placed in large bags. These bags are easy to tie to a wooden plywood and bamboo frame that will serve as the base of the island. Great! And Richie got to work.

It turned out that the bottles really have excellent swimming properties. Having made the frame, Richie Sova laid sheets of plywood and other materials on it, and overlaid the edges with stones and cemented them. He covered the entire interior space with sand from the beach, since new portions of sand were delivered to the shore daily. sea ​​waves. And in the middle of the island he built himself a hut a la a country house. But the unenlightened residents of the village of San Pedro Pochutla did not like this independent art object at all. They complained about Richie to the police. And there was nothing left for him to do but move quickly. But it turned out to be for the best. Three days later, a hurricane hit the coast, which blew to pieces not only the makeshift island, but the entire village.

In harmony with nature

The next attempt to fulfill the dream was more successful. In 1998, Richie looked after the lagoon near the village of Puerto Aventura, south of fashionable Cancun. This time he got permission early. local authorities for the construction of his island, and, free from legal fetters, his creative thought began to work with a vengeance. According to the previous scheme, he built a new island. And a little later it became clear that the island could actually increase in size as new bottles were collected. The frame is completed, the bags are hung again ... and so on ad infinitum! This means that it can be turned into a full-fledged part of the land, that is, for example, plants can be planted on it. Which? Say, mangrove bushes that will provide the owner with coolness. Happened! The plants took root and began to grow. When the island reached sufficient size, Richie Owl built a house on it - two-story, with a roof terrace. What else is missing for happiness? And the owner ennobled his life with a composting toilet, a solar stove and a container for collecting rainwater.

Thanks to this technology - buildings around the perimeter - journalists dubbed Richie's creation a spiral island. Creating his floating home, he brilliantly solved the problem of recycling bottles: it took 250 thousand pieces of this used container to maintain buoyancy! That is, it was possible to clean up very decently natural beach- despite the fact that the island turned out to be not very large: 20 by 16 meters. There is something to think about.

Waste cycle

And above all, thought Richie himself. During the construction process, he came to the conclusion that a person can arrange his life on the planet without negative consequences for this planet, i.e. without polluting it with waste. On the contrary, these wastes can be integrated into the general circulation of substances on Earth. And the coexistence of man and nature will finally become harmonious.

That's just the second island suffered the fate of the first: in 2005, a serious hurricane flew in and smashed Richie's flimsy creature into pieces. It's a shame. However, the natural disaster only confirmed the correctness of the eco-path chosen by Richie: not a single bottle jumped out of the bags and went on a garbage swim in the ocean - these same bags were simply thrown ashore with all their contents. And most importantly - the experience of Richie Owl was noticed and appreciated! The head of the local ecological park, Oscar Konstandze, was so imbued with Richie's idea of ​​​​man-made "green islands" that he gave the artist $ 20,000 for a new island! There were other enthusiasts who raised another 40 thousand dollars. And a couple of years later, the third creation of a free artist appeared.

ship island

Richie built it on the tourist-favorite Isle of Women (Mujeres) and named it Joyxie. On it stands a two-story house, covered with cloth awnings, mangrove bushes are again planted around. By the way, the mantras planted along the edges of the island perform a very useful eco-function: their roots grow down and entangle the bags with bottles, further strengthening the structure, so that not a single bottle breaks free and turns back into floating garbage. For the soul, Richie added two ponds, a river (!) And a waterfall that runs on solar panels. And for food, he set up a garden with a lemon tree and a vegetable garden on which tomatoes, watermelons, and spinach ripen. Beauty!

Richie Owl continues the experiment by trying to turn his hitherto laid-up island into an independent watercraft. According to his idea, it is necessary to use the power of the waves, which could drive some kind of fins to move the structure through the water, as well as household appliances like a washing machine, refrigerator and air conditioner. The Mexican authorities have already officially recognized Richie Island as a floating craft and forced the owner to acquire the necessary accessories for the boat, such as signal lights, a life buoy, a fire hydrant and a first aid kit.

And, very importantly, how old island, the new one also continues to grow in size: its diameter has exceeded 25 meters. If it goes on like this, then soon it will be possible to build a guesthouse for tourists. And in the future, perhaps, a whole hotel? In any case, such a prospect for the development of spiral islands is already being talked about in the press. And they don't just talk. Some engineers are seriously thinking about building large " green islands”, which would not pollute the environment and exist on the principle of the cycle of substances in nature.

Shelter for refugees

The Dutch firm Whim Architecture does not hide the fact that it was Ritchie's experience that served as an inspiration for her. After all, it is ingenious to use as a building material plastic garbage that floats in the ocean in myriads! As planned by the Dutch, special ships will catch this garbage, and other ships will process it into building panels like Lego cubes, from which islands of any configuration will be assembled. And these islands will be large, up to 10 square kilometers, where the whole city will fit.

He will provide himself with food and energy. As on the tiny island of Richie, gardens and kitchen gardens will grow here on the imported land, paradise for relaxation. Human waste will be turned into compost and used for fertilizer. And give energy solar panels, wave power generators and windmills. If you grow edible algae on the island, you can fully provide yourself with food, medicines, biofuels. The trailers, working on environmentally friendly energy, will serve as transport. And we will need desalination plants to produce our own drinking water.

IN pacific ocean located unusual island, which is not marked on any map of the world. Meanwhile, the area of ​​​​this place, which has become a real shame of our planet, already exceeds the territory of France. The fact is that humanity produces garbage, which is increasing every day and covering new territories not only on earth. The inhabitants of aquatic ecosystems, which have experienced all the delights of civilization in recent decades, are suffering extremely.

Unfortunately, most people do not know about the real environmental situation and dirty heritage of mankind. The problem of marine debris causing irreparable damage environment, is not made public, and in fact, according to approximate estimates, the weight of plastic, which emits toxic substances, is more than one hundred million tons.

How does garbage get into the ocean?

Where does the garbage in the ocean come from if a person does not live there? More than 80% of waste comes from land sources, and most of them are plastic water bottles, bags, cups. In addition, fishing nets and containers lost from ships end up in the sea. Two countries are considered the main polluters - China and India, where residents dump garbage directly into the water.

Two sides of plastic

We can say that from the moment plastic was invented, the total pollution of the green planet began. A material that has made life so much easier for people has become a real poison to the land and ocean when it gets there after use. Decomposing for more than a hundred years, cheap plastic, which is so easy to get rid of, causes serious damage to nature.

This problem has been talked about for more than fifty years, but environmentalists only sounded the alarm in early 2000, since the planet appeared new mainland consisting of waste. Undercurrents knocked plastic rubbish into garbage islands in the ocean, who are trapped in a kind of trap and cannot go beyond it. It is not possible to say exactly how much unnecessary trash the planet stores.

Garbage Isle of Death

The largest landfill, which is located in the Pacific basin, goes 30 meters deep and stretches from California to Hawaiian Islands for hundreds of kilometers. For decades, plastic floated in water until it formed huge island growing at a catastrophic pace. According to researchers, its mass now exceeds the mass of zooplankton by almost seven times.

The Pacific garbage island, made of plastic that crumbles into small pieces under the influence of salt and the sun, is held in one place thanks to undercurrents. Here is a subtropical whirlpool, which is called the "desert of the oceans." Various rubbish has been brought here from different parts of the world for many years, and due to the abundance of rotting animal corpses, wet wood, the water is saturated with hydrogen sulfide. This is a real dead zone, extremely poor in life. In a fetid place where a fresh wind never blows, merchant and warships do not enter, trying to bypass it.

But after the 50s of the last century, the situation deteriorated sharply, and plastic packaging, bags and bottles that did not undergo biological decay processes were added to the remains with algae. Now a garbage island in the Pacific Ocean, the area of ​​​​which increases several times every ten years, consists of 90% polyethylene.

Danger to birds and marine life

Mammals living in the water take waste that gets stuck in the stomach as food and soon die. They become entangled in the debris, taking fatal injuries. Birds feed their chicks with small, sharp granules resembling eggs, which leads to their death. Ocean debris is also dangerous for humans, because many marine life that get inside it are poisoned by plastic.

Debris floating on the surface of the ocean blocks the sun's rays, which threatens the normal life of plankton and algae, which support the ecosystem by producing nutrients. Their disappearance will lead to the death of many species of marine life. Garbage island, consisting of plastic that does not decompose in water, is fraught with danger to all living beings.

Giant garbage can

Recent studies by scientists have shown that the main part of the garbage is the smallest plastic particles about five millimeters in size, which are distributed both on the surface and in the middle layers of the water. Because of this, it is not possible to find out the true extent of pollution, since it is impossible to see a garbage island in the Pacific Ocean from a satellite or aircraft. Firstly, about 70% of the rubbish sinks to the bottom, and secondly, transparent plastic particles lie under the surface of the water, and it is simply unrealistic to see them from a height. A giant polyethylene stain can only be seen from a ship that came close to it, or by scuba diving. Some scientists claim that its area is approximately 15 million kilometers.

The changing balance of the ecosystem

When studying pieces of plastic found in water, it was found that they are densely populated with microbes: about a thousand bacteria were found per millimeter, both harmless and capable of causing disease. It turned out that garbage is changing the ocean, and it is impossible to predict what consequences this will lead to, and yet people are highly dependent on the existing ecosystem.

The Pacific spot is not the only dump on the planet; there are five more large and several small dumps in the waters of Antarctica and Alaska in the world. No specialist can say exactly what the degree of their contamination is.

The discoverer of the floating junk island

Of course, the existence of such a phenomenon as a garbage island has long been predicted by well-known oceanographers, but only 20 years ago, Captain C. Moore, returning from a regatta, discovered millions of plastic particles around his yacht. He did not even realize that he swam into the garbage heap, which had no end. Charles, interested in the problem, founded an environmental organization dedicated to the study of the Pacific Ocean.

From the reports of the yachtsman, where he warned of the threat looming over humanity, at first they simply brushed aside. And only after a strong storm, which threw tons of plastic garbage onto the beaches of the Hawaiian Islands, which caused the death of thousands of animals and birds, the name Mura became known to the whole world.

Cautions

After the research, during which sea ​​water Carcinogenic substances used in the production of reusable bottles were discovered, the American warned that the continued use of polyethylene would begin to threaten the entire planet. "Plastic that absorbs chemicals is incredibly toxic," said the discoverer of an island made up of floating junk. Marine life absorb the poison, and the ocean has turned into plastic soup."

First, garbage particles end up in the stomachs of underwater inhabitants, and then migrate to people's plates. So polyethylene becomes a link in the food chain, which is fraught with fatal diseases for people, because scientists have long proven the presence of plastic in the human body.

"Animal off the leash"

The rubbish island, on the surface of which it is impossible to walk, consists of tiny particles that form a muddy soup. Ecologists compared it to a large animal that is off a leash. As soon as the dump reaches land, chaos begins. There are cases when the beaches were covered with plastic "confetti", which not only spoiled the rest of tourists, but also led to the death of sea turtles.

However, the garbage island destroying the natural ecosystem, the photo of which was bypassed by all the world publications devoted to ecology, is gradually turning into a real atoll with a solid surface. And this is very frightening to modern scientists, who believe that soon the littered areas will become entire continents.

Dump on dry land

More recently, the public was shocked by the fact that in the Maldives, where the tourism industry is extremely developed, too much rubbish is generated. Luxury hotels do not sort it for further processing, as required by the rules, but unload it into a single pile. Some boaters who do not want to wait in line to dump waste simply throw it into the water, and what remains ends up on the artificial garbage island Thilafushi, which has turned into a city dump.

This place, not reminiscent of paradise, is located not far from the usual resorts, a place where residents are trying to find things suitable for sale, hung a cloud of black smog from bonfires with rubbish. The landfill is expanding towards the sea, and severe water pollution has already begun, and the government has not solved the problem of garbage disposal. There are tourists who come to Thilafushi specifically to look at the man-made disaster up close.

scary facts

In 2012, experts from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography examined polluted areas off the coast of California and found that in just forty years, the amount of garbage has increased a hundred times. And this state of affairs is very worrying for researchers, because there is a high probability that a moment will come when it will be impossible to fix anything.

unresolved problem

No country in the world is ready to clean up contaminated sites, and Charles Moore confidently stated that this could ruin even the richest state. The garbage island in the Pacific Ocean, the photos of which cause fear for the future of the planet, is located in neutral waters, and it turns out that the floating trash is nobody's. In addition, this is not only very costly, but also practically impossible, because small plastic particles are the same size as plankton, and nets have not yet been developed that could separate debris from small marine inhabitants. And no one knows what to do with the waste that has settled at the bottom for many years.

Scientists warn that it is possible to prevent waste from entering the water if people are not able to clean up garbage islands in the ocean. Photos of giant landfills make every inhabitant of the Earth think about the conditions in which his children and grandchildren will exist. It is necessary to minimize the consumption of plastic, recycle it, clean up after themselves, and only then will people be able to save mother nature and those unique monuments that she gave us.

A British artist named Richard Owl built in the Caribbean private island, which has everything for have a nice rest: swimming pools, internet access, hot tub, private beach, three-storey house. The peculiarity of this island is that it is made ... of plastic bottles!

The name of the island, which was created by Richard Sowa, sounds like Joysxee Island, and this is quite an attractive place to live and relax. It is located near the Isla of Women (Isla Mujeres), and its total area is 750 m 2.

In fact, it's not an island at all, at least not in the typical sense. Joysxee floats on an artificial base of 150,000 air-filled bottles that are in large nets. This floating bottom layer is covered with sand, straw and soil.

As an anchor and natural structural fortification of the island, growing mangrove trees are used, the roots of which break through these levels.

Joysxee is tied to the ground, and this connection is used to provide Internet services, electricity from solar panels and as an additional anchor.

Self-sufficient floating accommodation with all amenities

Richard built this island himself and continues to maintain it technically on his own and sometimes with the help of volunteers who have been visiting the island since 2008. Guests are transported there on barges that can accommodate 8 passengers. Barges are also made from plastic bottles.

At first, Joysxee Island was a modest raft covered with leaves, but gradually it turned into a space large enough for its owner to live a self-sufficient lifestyle.

The three-story, two-bedroom, hot tub house on Joysxee certainly looks very modest. There is also a rainwater collection system, showers and a fully functioning bathroom with a dry composting toilet.

The mangrove trees that anchor this island are not the only greenery on Joysxee. Richard has a garden where he grows his own vegetables, including tomatoes and spinach, as well as fruit trees.

Richard's previous project - Spiral Island

Joysxee is not Richard's first attempt at creating an island out of plastic bottles. Many years ago he built an island on west coast Mexico.

Unfortunately, residents of a nearby beach complained about his strange hut, perched on top of plastic bottles. Soon after, the local police forced him to leave.

In the late 1990s, Owl implemented a more ambitious project called Spiral Island (“Spiral Island”) on the coast caribbean in Mexico. This time he used a plastic bottle base with wood and mangrove roots. The island had a base of 250,000 bottles. Mangrove trees over 7 meters high grew on it.

However, Spiral Island did not survive Hurricane Emily, which struck caribbean in 2005. Workers helped collect the wreckage of the island and saved some of the bottle-filled nets, giving them to Richard. He reused these bottles to create Joysxee with the help of local environmentalists who wanted to support his eco-island idea.

After collection a large number Bottle Owl built his new island between 2007 and 2008. He decided to place it in a lagoon on the Isle of Women to protect it from the destruction that his previous creation had to endure.

Bottle islands - the future of the planet?

Richard believes his island structures could be the start of something bigger. The island is an example of a living space powered by wind, sun and wave energy. Richard claims to constantly improve the air conditioner, water pump and Charger to get electricity. In addition, mangrove trees can purify the air by absorbing carbon dioxide.

Owl notes that his islands are practically unsinkable due to the huge number of bottles. Even if several punctures or leaks appear, the overall structure will not be affected. He also says floating islands will not be affected by rising sea levels, floods or other disasters.

Owl welcomes guests to Joysxee and also offers tours. For trips, including a return trip to shore, he asks for "a donation of $5 or more." Volunteers can stay in a room for free or for $20 (including breakfast).