Water & Shore Cleanup

Buying advice

Derate the skimmer's nameplate rate

A skimmer's rated throughput is not what it recovers over a day of real operations, and regulators plan with that gap in mind. The US Coast Guard's guidance in 33 CFR Part 154, Appendix C, calculates effective daily recovery capacity as throughput multiplied by 24 hours and by an efficiency factor of 20 percent, or lower if the Coast Guard decides. It also derates that capacity when storage for recovered oil is insufficient. Use the same logic when comparing the Desmi Ro-Klean and Elastec Grooved Disc: ask for tested recovery rates in conditions like yours, and size tanks, barges or bladders so that storage never becomes the limit.

Write the kit into the harbour plan

In the UK, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's guidelines for ports explain how harbour authorities prepare oil spill contingency plans that join up with national arrangements, run exercises and keep response capability ready. Kit that is not written into that plan is hard to call on quickly when an incident starts. Before you buy, decide which incidents the equipment is meant for, who will deploy it at night or in poor weather, where it will be stored close to the water and how often your team will exercise with it. Ask the maker for training, a maintenance schedule and a list of spares that should be held locally.

Litter recovery is a separate purchase

At our last update in October 2026, published prices on this page sat between about $80,000 and $5 million, from the BeBot (Poralu Marine) to the Ocean Cleanup System 002, and each one carried a price. Plastic litter and oil call for different equipment, owners and measures of success. Directive (EU) 2019/904 targets the environmental impact of certain plastic products, so plan from the start to record what each clean-up removes and where it ends up. If you are comparing the BeBot, the JLMD System or a floating plastics system, ask how collected material is stored, sorted and weighed, where it goes for recycling or disposal, and how the machine avoids taking sand, vegetation or wildlife along with the litter.

What to look for

• Where it works: beach, harbour, river or open sea
• Collection rate and capacity for the waste or oil you need to recover
• Crew, vessel and power support needed to deploy and run it

Common questions

Which cleanup system suits my site?

Start with the environment and the waste. Beach robots sift sand for litter, skimmers recover oil from the water's surface, and floating systems gather plastic over large areas.

Do cleanup systems need a crew?

Most need people to deploy, monitor and empty them, and larger marine systems may need a support vessel. Check each listing for its operating requirements.

Sources and further reading

• 33 CFR Part 154, Appendix C: Guidelines for determining and evaluating required response resources for facility response plans — US Coast Guard (eCFR).
  Method for rating an oil skimmer's effective daily recovery capacity, with efficiency and storage derating.
• Contingency planning for marine pollution preparedness and response: guidelines for ports — Maritime and Coastguard Agency (UK).
  UK guidance for harbour authorities on oil spill contingency plans, exercises and links to national response.
• Directive (EU) 2019/904 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment — European Union (EUR-Lex).
  EU measures to cut the environmental impact of certain plastic products, from market restrictions to producer responsibility.