If you’re a fan of Ikea, you’ll know what a Småkryp is. You are likely to have one in your bath. It’s the brand’s best-selling bath toy – a blue-decked ship with a funnel made of upturned orange and yellow buckets.
Right now, in the UK, there are two giant Småkryps in its most polluted waterways. They’re quite a sight with their blue decks, and upturned yellow and orange bucket funnels. There’s no-one on the ships either. The Good Ships Ikea are being remotely controlled and they’re clearing rubbish.
The ships are the idea of Mother London, drawing attention to the launch of Ikea Greenwich on February 7, while underlining its sustainablility ideals.
The two boats are currently in action at Deptford Creek, south east London. Each one uses cutting-edge Orca technology developed in China, which allows them to collect up to 20kgs of rubbish at one time. Orca, which was founded in 2017, is an unmanned environmental protection boat, that has been equipped with rubbish clearing capabilities. The boats measure nearly three metres in length and weigh up to 70kgs. They are highly durable and anti-corrosive, making them as effective as possible in clearing rubbish and debris from water.
Ikea is partnering with Creekside Education Trust in Deptford on the Good Ship Ikea project to provide a half-term educational experience for local families. The public is being invited to captain the boats remotely and the rubbish collected will be upcycled into a unique sculpture that will take pride of place at the newly opened Ikea Greenwich store.
In London alone, 300 tonnes of rubbish are cleared from the Thames every year. Various types of rubbish enter the waterways around Deptford and Greenwich every year and the most commonly found items are water bottles, crisp packets and footballs.
Ikea Greenwich is committed to having a positive impact on the local community. Following the half-term activity, the Good Ship Ikea boats will be permanently donated to the sustainability charity, Hubbub, as part of its ongoing programme to educate people on plastic pollution in our waterways.
Helen Aylett, Ikea Greenwich store manager, commented, “Ikea is committed to playing a key role in the community and the Good Ship Ikea is just one of many ways we are demonstrating this. In partnership with Creekside Education Trust and Hubbub, we are taking on the important issue of plastic pollution with a playful activity and encouraging children and families to join us in cleaning up the local area.”
Jill Goddard, chair of Creekside Education Trust, added, “We have over 7,000 local school children and their families visiting us every year and we are primed to educate them on plastic usage, the harm it causes our local wildlife and how it ends up in Deptford Creek, the Thames and eventually the ocean. We are delighted to be teaming up with IKEA on delivering a fun but educational activity for the local community during half-term. So much plastic rubbish comes through the river water course and we strongly believe that if we all do a little bit, our waterways will be hugely improved for all of us.”
