CSIRO is working with Microsoft and Hobart City Council to develop these new technology solutions.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has announced partnerships with Microsoft, Hobart City Council, and Chemistry Australia to address — and attempt to end — Australia’s plastics waste issue. Under its plastics mission, CSIRO will work with its partners to develop new solutions that use artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and camera sensors for plastics detection and waste monitoring in waterways. CSIRO senior principal research scientist Denise Hardesty said the goal would be to apply technology to the entire plastics supply chain to eliminate rubbish ending up in the environment. « Our research is helping to understand the extent of plastic pollution in Australia and globally, and how to reduce it, » she said. « Rethinking plastic packaging is just one way of reducing waste, through better design, materials, and logistics. We can also transform the way we use, manufacture, and recycle plastics by creating new products and more value for plastics. » Specifically, the national science agency is working with Microsoft to use ML and apply camera sensor technologies to waste traps, which are commonly used by councils to prevent rubbish flowing into storm drains, to collect data that can help detect and classify rubbish found in waterways. Read also: A long-term battle: The tech industry’s role in combatting climate change « Microsoft AI image recognition is underpinning the identification of plastic pollution, » Microsoft Australia CTO Lee Hickin said.
