Professor Trash Wheel

Professor Trash Wheel uses a combination of old and new technology to harness the power of water and sunlight to pick up litter and debris flowing down Harris Creek into Baltimore Harbor. During rain storms, the current of the stream helps turn the wheel, which lifts trash and debris from the water and deposits it in a dumpster barge, while a solar panel array provides additional power when the water current is not strong enough. When the dumpster is full, it is towed away by boat and replaced. Harris Creek's watershed is entirely piped beneath east Baltimore City and empties into the harbor here. Once an open flowing stream, Harris Creek was covered and piped in the early 19th century to create more land for an expanding Baltimore City. Its watershed covers 1,271 acres, includes two parks, and is home to approximately 44,000 people. When it rains, water carries litter from streets into storm drains that flow unfiltered into streams like Harris Creek, and without a device like this one, Baltimore's litter can end up in the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Historically, Harris Creek was home to shipyards that produced a variety of ships, including the USS Constellation in 1797, and today it flows under 17 neighborhoods in East Baltimore before emptying here.

Baltimore, Maryland · United States