UNICEF Gives A Reason to Celebrate “Back to School” Season!
The school year is just around the corner for most of us here in Southeast Texas! It’s with hopeful hearts we share the recent news that bricks made from recycled plastic waste can be used to build a variety of sustainable materials!
UNICEF, also known as The United Nations Children’s Fund, is in partnership with Conceptos Plasticos, a Colombian social enterprise. They recently announced that they have plans to convert plastic waste collected from the Ivory Coast into modular plastic bricks.
“The easy-to-assemble, durable, low-cost bricks will be used to build much needed classrooms in the West African country. The bricks will be made from 100 per cent plastic and are fire resistant. They are 40 per cent cheaper, 20 per cent lighter and will last hundreds of years longer than conventional building materials. They are also waterproof, well insulated and designed to resist heavy wind.”
To read the full story, visit the UNICEF Press Release.
But this isn’t the first time we’ve seen plastic waste turned into sustainable building materials…
Over the summer, New Zealand company ByFusion came to California’s Manhattan Beach to build a Lifeguard tower made of plastic bricks – composed of recycled plastics. Soon, the company plans to open operations in Los Angeles. It plans to make its machine, dubbed “The Blocker”, available in the US by end of year. The Blocker is responsible for turning the plastic trash into construction materials. It shreds the plastic then uses super-heated water and compression to make the “ByBlocks”.
“But why should I care?”, you might ask.
“The waste management-recycling industry is in a critical state and must change to meet the shifting market,” ByFusion CEO Heidi Kujawa said of the opportunities driving the company’s vision. “We’re entering the market at a pivotal time.”
To read the full story, visit The Press-Enterprise.
Less than 10 percent of plastics worldwide are recycled and with China phasing out the import of recyclables, the market is rapidly shrinking.
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