> The Ocean Cleanup didn’t work, for the reasons experts said it wouldn’t. What can we learn from this?

Listen to experts. At least they recognize the "I told you so".

They may not have solved the problem, but at least they are doing something about it. In my opinion, that's better than doing nothing at all. I've seen firsthand how their solutions have been implemented and have had a positive impact on the environment. How often do we hear promises from NGOs or government entities claiming they will solve humanitarian issues such as housing shortages or hunger, only to fail miserably while spending billions of dollars in the process? Meanwhile, others grow rich from government tenders and contracts at the expense of the unfortunate beneficiaries.

The title of the article is kind of technically correct but still misleading.

It is true that The Ocean Cleanup "we're going to trawl the ocean for plastic" approach isn't working terribly well.

But they did pivot to stopping trash from washing out of rivers and into the ocean which is working. Stopping the mess from growing is also a very good thing.

This seems like some combination of the enemy of good is perfect and also sour grapes that someone else is doing the thing.

Sympathetic to other strategies but that writeup is wholly unconvincing. It comes across as astroturf.