(JACKSON, Miss.) – A pilot project funded by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality deployed four litter collectors this week on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The device is a floating structure that uses booms to direct the flow of water and litter into a trap. These floating trash traps collect both litter and debris, and the booms allow wildlife, kayaks, and boats to navigate over or under it. They will be placed at four locations: the southern branch of Magnolia Bayou in Hancock County, on Brickyard Bayou and Canal #1 in Harrison County, and one in Jackson County on Bayou Chico.
“It is our objective to learn if these traps can substantially reduce the amount of litter which enters the Mississippi Sound from upland areas and to collect data on what types of litter are in our streams as well as their sources. We are exploring various ways to improve water quality including conducting this pilot project to remove trash and litter from waterways. We look forward to the results of this project and perhaps the opportunity to expand the use of litter traps coastwide or maybe even statewide,” said Chris Wells, MDEQ Executive Director.
The project is funded by the Strategic Streams Restoration Program under Bucket 1 of the RESTORE Act. MDEQ awarded $162,150 to Mississippi State University’s Coastal Research and Extension Center for the pilot project.
In this video, MSU’s Eric Sparks explains how the devices work.
Photos from one being installed in Pascagoula are attached below.
More information about Mississippi’s comprehensive restoration efforts can be found at restore.ms.
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