Big rise in North Pacific plastic waste

[Nihil]

3. "Size is important"

Most of the plastic in the gyre is small particles.

To "catch" those particles you would need a very fine net indeed
but not only would you strip all life out of the area in the process,
you'd have an instant "clogging" effect requiring you to do more
of a bailing operation than a trawling one.

Yes, vessels could "strain" the largest elements out of the gyre
but that wouldn't fix the problem - just make it less visible and
so less of an issue for plastic users ...

It needs to be addressed at source: stop producing such quantities
of waste and stop making it available to uncaring consumers who just
dump it according to whim.