Normally an 8,000-nautical mile cross-Pacific voyage isn’t a noteworthy event. But it is if you’ve done it on a 20-meter catamaran built from 12,500 two-liter plastic bottles.

On July 26, 2010 Adventure Ecology and a crew of six accomplished such a feat, completing a 128-day journey from San Francisco to Sydney in The Plastiki.

The voyage was Adventure Ecology’s way of showing people that would-be waste can be used as a valuable resource. So knowing that up to 80% of total marine pollution consists of plastic materials, the group designed and engineered a boat largely composed of it as an example. The plastic bottles line the boat’s two hulls, keeping it buoyant. Plastiki’s sail is even made from recycled PET.

The catamaran is also equipped with solar panels, wind and trailing sea turbines, and bicycle generators to create onboard electricity for lighting and cooking.

And as if the eco-friendly boat design wasn’t enough, the crew took saltwater showers, captured drinking water from a rain catchment system and ate various meals grown in an onboard hydroponic vertical garden to further promote sustainability.