MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. — Beachgoers in Pinellas County will be sharing the coast this summer with a new beach cleaning robot. 

What You Need To Know

  • ‘BeBot’ is a solar-powered remote control robot that’s roughly the size of a golf cart

  • Its job is to comb the beach and sift through sand, collecting microplastics and smaller trash particles that usually end up in the water

  • Meet BeBot

‘BeBot’ is a solar-powered remote control robot that’s roughly the size of a golf cart. Its job is to comb the beach and sift through sand, collecting microplastics and smaller trash particles that usually end up in the water. 

“When you first look at the sand it looks like the beach is very clean, but when you get down below the surface, that’s when you start seeing this,” said Bryan Bobbitt of Keep Brevard Beautiful, while holding a handful of bottle caps. “As it sits in the sand and sun, it’s going to break down even more and become smaller pieces of microplastics. Unfortunately, it’ll end up in the water and the fish and the wildlife will eat it.” 

BeBot works by sifting through layers of sand and trapping the plastic pieces left behind. From there, the robot’s operator can dispose of the trash. BeBot took its pilot run in Brevard County before heading to Pinellas County last Friday.  

The robot can be seen across Pinellas County beaches starting the first weekend in July.