• MAS Foundation for Change on the impact of their ocean strainers

The distinct odour of a canal in Colombo is something many of us are familiar with. However, our concern regarding the cleanliness of these canals as well as what they carry into the ocean should go beyond holding our breath as we walk or drive past these waterways. MAS, through the MAS Foundation for Change, estimates that 672,676 kg of waste is collected by the 24 ocean strainers they have currently deployed in the island.

The ocean strainer installed in the Wasala Road Canal in Dehiwala collects approximately 5,152 kg of waste a month

The 12-month estimates show a collection of 139,100 kg from Serpentine Canal 1 in Borella, 92,300 kg from Serpentine Canal 2 in Borella, and 66,976 kg from the Dehiwala Wasala Road Canal. While these numbers are mere estimates, observing the flow of garbage down these canals towards the ocean will paint an accurate picture of just how important these ocean strainers are.

The ocean strainers themselves are simple enough instalments. The floating device has a high-tension wire running in the middle, with rigifoam running around it, and covered with a canvas. The device is expected to last at least five years, although it’s likely to only need replacements every ten years. This is due to any external wear and tear as opposed to any damage to the core wire.

While being durable, the ocean strainers are removable for maintenance and can be unhooked in a short time. The device stays at water level and catches any waste that is headed for the ocean down the canal. The design is considerate of any species that may go beneath it or sit on top of it.

MAS Foundation for Change Executive Director Sharika Senanayake shared more information about the project with The Daily Morning Brunch, explaining that the open intellectual property model allows others to connect with the organisation to install ocean strainers where they see fit. The MAS Foundation for Change does not charge management fees, and 100% of an interested party’s donation will go towards the installation of the device.

The foundation, acting as an enabler, is open to sharing the tech pack for the ocean strainer, and will also monitor and evaluate the project, as well as sort out all the necessary government networking. 

The starting point

The MAS Foundation for Change was established in 2022 as an independent non-profit organisation to create large-scale solutions to global challenges, in collaboration with public and private sector stakeholders.

The instalment of the first ocean strainer happened before the establishment of the foundation, with the ocean strainer in the Dehiwala Wasala Road installed in August 2020. However, MAS’ interest in the ocean precedes even this, Senanayake said, sharing that MAS has been involved in beach clean ups since 2014. These activities were inspired by two MAS leaders taking part in Trail, a 670 km walk along the length of Sri Lanka in aid of cancer treatment and promoting unity. During this walk, they observed the amount of pollution along the coastline and wanted to start cleaning it up.

“There is an assumption that it is what people throw in when they visit the beach, but when the waste started coming back in a week or so, we realised that the waste was actually being generated by our internal waterways, like canals and rivers, and that was how it was flowing into the sea. What we then thought of doing was putting a physical barrier that stopped the waste going from some of the canals to the sea,” Senanayake explained. This led to installing the first ocean strainer in Dehiwala. Currently they are working towards their goal of 200 ocean strainers by 2025.

The ocean strainer prevents waste from flowing to the ocean

The impact

The impact of the ocean strainers can be seen by the amount of waste collected from the canals daily. According to Senanayake, the residents of the area are also happy with the ocean strainers, as it could revert the canals back to the state they were years ago, a source of clean water. “Today, it has become a drain. It smells, it’s rotting, and it’s terrible. Because it’s being cleaned very frequently, the residents are happy to see this. They are also aware of the fact that it generates so much waste and it has been quite an eye opener to them. Generally, we’ve always had support,” she said.

In addition to this, there are also people who benefit in a different manner from the ocean strainers. Senanayake spoke about community centres in Dematagoda, where people can skim off recycled material before the waste is taken away. This gives people who collect recycled waste access to a critical mass, thus enabling them to widen their collection activities. There is thus an economic value to the community.

Sustainable solutions

MAS Foundation for Change is hoping to reach 50 locations by the end of the year, but they do not look at the strainers as a permanent solution and instead intend on removing them at some point. 

“This was more of a preventive measure, but we are working with various other partners to see how we can work on community interventions and behavioural change, and understand why this is happening and where it’s coming from. So there is still a lot more work to do, but we thought the first thing to do was stop the waste from going into the sea and then work with the communities to stop it from coming into the waterways in the first place,” MAS Foundation for Change Grants and Partnership Manager Muditha Katuwawala shared.

“At the end of the day, we should be able to get the support of the community and have understanding and engagement. The perception needs to be changed. That’s key,” he added.

“In the long run, you can’t be cleaning canals all the time as well. There has to be a root cause solution, whether it is removing detrimental plastic from going out to the consumer or at a consumer level, better household waste management and better community waste management. These are sustainable solutions,” he shared.

Katuwawala added: “Ideally we should be able to remove all these strainers. In developed countries, we don’t see strainers. It’s the community giving their 100% to stop the waste from going to the waterways.”