A "LethermanⓇ" boat for pollution control

A local company in New Caledonia has just invested in a multi-service boat designed to combat marine pollution and recover wastewater.

A local company has invested in a multi-service boat to combat marine pollution and collect waste water.

Boaters who live aboard their boats in marinas will now be able to call on a boat specially equipped to evacuate their waste water. The presentation of this utility boat, called Ecotank, took place on Friday in Nouville. Wilfried Point, its inventor, has entered into a partnership with a local company, SNV, so that it can use these innovative solutions.

The concept of this boat is to be a "Swiss Army knife of depollution", says Wilfried Point. It can play the role of a "garbage truck" for marinas, by connecting to the bilge and thus recovering grey and black water from boats, or even stagnant bilge water, which is generally soiled. Practical and odourless, the boat will make it possible to offer this new service. Because the discharge of waste water is prohibited in marinas. Especially as it generally encourages the arrival of sharks.

In addition to pleasure boating, the boat can also play a role in cleaning up inaccessible areas. Thanks to its thick, resistant hull, it can operate in draughts of less than 15 cm. It also has a fire hose with a flow rate of 1,000 litres per minute to limit the spread of a fire or, more original, to carry out a clean-up operation, for example on a rock face. "By circumscribing the area with a boom, the hose can precipitate the pollutant in the water, which can be recovered more easily with a skimmer, an equipment that the boat is also equipped with," explains Wilfried Point.

Cleaning up sunken ships

A cage at the front of the hull can also "harvest" solid waste floating on the surface of the harbour. A winch can also be used to clean up sunken ships before they are refloated.

The vessel has a capacity of 4 tonnes for liquid waste and 4 tonnes for solid waste. It was designed and developed by Wilfried Point, who runs the company Azure trend, based on the French Riviera. He says he carries out "between 350 and 450 clean-up operations per year", recovering "between 9 and 10 million litres of pollutants and 350 and 450 tonnes of solid waste".

This new equipment is likely to be of interest to yachtsmen, as it will save them the trouble of emptying their waste water.