The article discusses the issues related to the solution of an actual problem – the recycling of accumulations of plastic waste in the ocean. It is proposed to organize the plastic recycling process directly in the ocean on recycling vessels. At the same time, the products of mechanical processing and pyrolysis can be used to support the construction, road construction, and electric power industries of coastal developing countries in Africa and Latin America, near which the largest amount of plastic waste is concentrated. It is proposed to use both systems with artificial intelligence trained to recognize and identify plastic by shape, and systems based on spectral analysis of the composition of plastic for sorting and identification.

Keywords: plastic waste, microplastics, plastic recycling in the ocean, recycling vessel, plastic type recognition, use of recycled plastic