WINDSOR

Rio de Janeiro garbage boats aim to clean Olympic waters, critics say sewage not addressed

The Associated Press Published Monday, January 6, 2014 4:16PM EST

Authorities, back to camera, look at the Rio 2016 Olympics Games emblem, projected on a video screen, at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro in 2010. (AP / Felipe Dana)

The Rio 2016 Olympics Games emblem, projected on a video screen, at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro in 2010. (AP / Felipe Dana)

Text:

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Authorities in Rio de Janeiro are using garbage boats to pluck trash and household debris from the waters of Guanabara Bay, which will host sailing events during the 2016 Olympic Games.

Three so-called "eco-boats" are now plowing the waters, picking up everything from plastic bottles to old couches from the bay, which has been heavily polluted for decades.

But critics say Monday the boats don't address the more pressing problem of sewage pollution.

Nearly 70 per cent of sewage in Rio is untreated, and flows freely into the bay and other waterways that will host Olympic events.

Gerson Serva heads the Rio government effort to clean the bay. He says the goal of the boats is to make sure there is no floating garbage in its waters during the Olympics.

(The Associated Press)