A Taiwan-wide survey
Wushi Harbor is relatively deserted at 9 a.m., with only a speckling of tourists and anglers, as well as a few commercial fishermen sorting through their catch. Azure Alliance CEO Chen Szu-ying, secretary-general Tseng Yu-ting, and head of operations Yen Hsiang-lin look a bit out of place here with their notebooks and cameras.
“Note the wind,” Chen tells her teammates, pointing to a flapping flag and reminding them of the wind direction’s influence on where trash accumulates. She then observes the kinds of trash floating on the water’s surface. Tseng spots a trashcan, and is thrilled to see a warehouse with recyclables arranged neatly inside. In addition to noting what they see for themselves, team members fill out their picture by interviewing workers on some of the fishing boats.
The upbeat Chen slowly guides her conversation with a fishermen from the composition of his catch to seasonal variations in harbor trash. “Is there more trash during any particular period?” A sturdy and tanned middle-aged man, the fisherman pauses, seemingly finding this to be a sensitive subject. “Do you catch trash in your nets?” “I don’t see any trashcans around here. Where do you throw your trash?” The fisherman laughs, “No, we don’t catch trash. We throw our trash away on land and someone sweeps it up.” His tongue-in-cheek response suggests that some local fishermen remain unaware of the ocean trash crisis.
When conducting its survey, Azure divides the harbor into several zones, and then carefully searches for things their trash skimmer needs to operate: a power source, water to hose off the device once its work is done, a boat ramp to get the device into the ocean, and a strong WiFi signal so that it can be remotely controlled. In addition to conducting an environmental survey, team members ask locals living near the harbor how they feel about and dispose of trash. “Our team isn’t picking up trash,” explains Chen. “We’re trying to analyze it.”
When the Azure Alliance surveyed Taiwan’s harbors, it made sure to ask the people living nearby for their views on trash.