Ocean Cleanup Gets $121M for 30 Cities Program
The Audacious Project's donation supports a plan to intercept plastic in rivers across 30 polluting cities in Asia and the Americas.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Environmental
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The Audacious Project committed $121 million to The Ocean Cleanup's 30 Cities Program, which targets 30 major polluting cities across Asia and the Americas. The donation covers part of the $350 million needed to complete this stage of the effort.
Why it matters
River plastic is a major source of ocean pollution, and the program aims to stop up to one-third of it reaching the oceans by 2030. The approach addresses urban waterway systems as a whole rather than treating each river as a separate project.
The organisation reports more than 65 million kilograms of rubbish removed and estimates it stops 2-5% of global river-borne plastic emissions. The $121 million gift covers part of the $350 million needed for this stage, leaving the remainder unfunded in the source.
The players
The Ocean Cleanup
A nonprofit organisation that develops technology to remove plastic pollution from rivers and oceans, and which runs the 30 Cities Program.
The Audacious Project
A philanthropic initiative that funds large-scale projects addressing global challenges, and which made the $121 million commitment.
The details
Under the 30 Cities Program, teams use aerial drones, AI-assisted image analysis and GPS-tagged test plastics to map waterways, then deploy Interceptor systems that collect floating rubbish carried by rivers. The program builds on five years of work across 20 of the world's most polluting rivers and also intends to remove accumulated waste from coastlines, mangroves and coral reefs.
Timeline
June 2025: The 30 Cities Program was announced at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice.
March 2026: A funding update named locations expected to receive Interceptor systems.
2026: The Audacious Project committed $121 million to the program.
2030: The target is to stop one-third of river plastic from reaching the oceans.
2040: The ambition is to remove 90% of floating ocean plastic pollution.
Big Picture
The 30 Cities Program extends the single-river Interceptor approach first used on the Los Angeles River in 2019 to coordinated deployments across many urban waterway systems. Rather than treating each river as a separate project, it applies one network of local partners to multiple polluting cities at once.
Readers in regions with heavy river plastic flows may see cleaner local waterways and coastlines if deployments in their cities proceed as planned. Individuals can reduce their own contribution by limiting single-use plastics that often end up in rivers.
The takeaway
Cleaning up plastic at the river level, before it reaches the sea, is a central strategy in this effort. Local waste management in the cities along these rivers will likely determine how much progress the program can sustain.
What happens next
The Interceptor systems are expected to be deployed in the named cities, including Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Barranquilla and Santo Domingo, with the program's 2030 interception target as the next major checkpoint.
Further reading
For related coverage, see Environmental reporting on river and ocean pollution.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Times of India.
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