The canals of London’s Thames river are no stranger to pedestrian traffic, but not to vehicles quite like this. Dhruv Boruah, a self-proclaimed “eco-warrior,” has spent the last year cleaning all manner of trash, recyclables, and generally out-of-place objects from the water’s surface. Similar to the Hudson river, though, the Thames isn’t exactly the kind of water someone should be swimming in. So, to cruise the waves, Boruah developed a special floating mount for his bicycle.
In addition to its bamboo floats, the bicycle is also equipped with two large baskets, into which Boruah dumps trash he collects with a grabber claw. Since beginning this little crusade last October, Boruah has collected over 350kg of assorted waste from the water.
Boruah was inspired to this undertaking during a yacht race with some friends. The ocean waters were so polluted with trash that they could barely move, and they actually had to drop out of the race to aid two turtles trapped in plastic rings. Boruah believes it’s important to raise awareness about the environment, but it’s gradually becoming even more important to come up with real solutions.
For now, he continues his work on the Thames, currently researching methods to clean the riverbed as well as the surface. He would also like to bring his setup to New York one day to try and tackle the Hudson.
