Seeing PixieDrone in action might remind some people of the Roomba, the robot vacuum.
PixieDrone is a remote-operated, mobile waste collector capable of churning across the surface of the water to remove floating debris, including organic, plastic, metal, and paper.
The drone was put to the test at the Barrie Marina on Thursday as the city and Pollution Probe announced a new partnership to clean up Lake Simcoe.
Mayor Alex Nuttall was joined at the waterfront by Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte MPP Doug Downey and representatives of Pollution Probe including CEO Christopher Hilkene, and Vice President Melissa De Young.
As part of the city joining the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup (GLPC), an initiative of Pollution Probe and the Council of the Great Lakes Region, the drone technology is being piloted at the Barrie Marina.
"The drone floats on the surface of the water and can pick up any debris that is floating on the surface," said De Young, the lead for the GLPC on the Canadian side. "It has about a six-hour charge and it can collect the equivalent of a bathtub's worth of plastic in that time."
The drone can be maneuvered in open water or between boats, wherever debris tends to accumulate.
"It's a really great tool to complement some of our other technologies and ensure that we're getting all the plastic out of the water," De Young added.
The technology has been piloted as part of the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup in the United States, but this is the first time it is being used by this initiative in Canada.
De Young says what surprises many people is that most of what is found in the Great Lakes are microplastics.
"They're very tine pieces, so you can't often see them when you're looking at the water."
Once the material is removed from the drone, De Young says they go over the pieces with a fine toothcomb.
"The Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup is actually built around three elements. The first is the removal of the plastic using the plastic capture technology. The second thing we do is collect data on everything we are pulling out of the water using those technologies."`
This is accomplished by weighing the debris and then figuring out how many pieces are thought to be in there based on weight.
The third pillar, says De Young, is volunteer groups come out and help sort through the debris to figure out what types of plastics they have captured.
"That's the most successful part of our program because it's a great opportunity to engage the public and provide stewardship opportunities. People feel like they are part of the solution."
Nuttall says Kempenfelt Bay is the jewel of Barrie, and protecting it remains a top priority for city council.
"The addition of this PixieDrone will allow us to take an innovative approach to keeping our lake clean. Our waterfront is not just a place of natural beauty, but a vital part of our city's identity and economy. With the addition of this new PixieDrone, we're taking important steps to preserve it for future generations."
In addition to the PixieDrone, the city says the Barrie Marina partnered with Pollution Probe and was provided with other trash-trapping technologies such as Seabins, and supported with trash audits attended by community members and the collection of critical data on what is removed from the water.
"Through the use of the Seabins, on average, about 76 pieces of trash were collected from Lake Simcoe each day this season." the city said in a news release.
In June 2023, the city began using Seabins and floating booms at various marina locations to remove waste from Lake Simcoe. The floating booms are located at the Bunker's Creek and Kidd's Creek culverts and Seabins are located at the seasonal and transient marinas.
