For better or worse, plastic has become an important source of raw materials for the modern world — we use it in many different aspects of our lives, everything from food packaging to computers and appliances. related peripheral equipment, as well as construction materials for modern buildings.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 300 million tons of plastic are produced each year. Unfortunately, at least 14 million tons of that total ends up in the ocean each year because plastic is, for one reason or another, disposed of and dumped in environmentally unfriendly ways.
In some parts of the world, there are many options for recycling plastic. But even where extensive plans are available, it can still be difficult to recycle some plastics – or worse, people just don’t mind.
The end result is a lot of plastic ending up in landfills or accidentally washing up on shores through the sewers and drainage systems of large urban areas. Some plastic is even dumped illegally, straight into the ocean.
This waste is harmful to the environment in many ways. Sea creatures can be injured or killed by ingesting or getting trapped in plastic debris. Any plastic that breaks down becomes microplastics or nanoplastics, which are consumed by the marine life we eat and can eventually get inside us, posing threats to our health. our health.
Also: PepsiCo is partnering with startups to tap into new sources of innovation. Here’s how it does it
Plastic pollution is also unsightly — a beach covered in plastic bottles is not picturesque and can discourage tourism, which can put tourism-dependent economies at risk, especially are in developing countries.
All these environmental considerations help explain why Boompods – a British electronics design company specializing in peripherals, such as speakers, headphones and earplugs, power banks and cables charger – is using recycled ocean plastic to make devices that people use every day, while supporting the fight against plastic pollution.
David Tansley, founder of Boompods, says one of the reasons he steers the company toward recycled ocean plastic is the amount of plastic pollution he’s witnessed first-hand.
“I live near the beach and I always freak out when I see plastic on the beach. Then, when I was on vacation in Greece, I was amazed to see how much plastic was at the beach,” he explains. .
“We know what the problems with marine life are and how, at the end of the day, food can end up in our food system, which also worries me quite a bit.”
These concerns have led Tansley and Boompods to partner with Tide, a Swiss company that collects and reuses ocean plastic to produce raw materials for sustainable products.
Plastic collected from the shores and oceans is reused into particles that are used to make a multitude of products, including electronics, auto parts, etc.
Tide has collected more than 30 million plastic bottles, which have been reused into other items — the company’s products contain no virgin plastic and the recycling process produces up to 80% less CO2 emissions than production of virgin plastic.
Tide’s focus on sustainability explains why Tansley wanted to work with the company to gather the resources needed to make products from recycled ocean plastic. “It wasn’t a very difficult decision to make,” he said.
Boompods is currently rolling out a range of products made from recycled ocean plastic, starting with mini Bluetooth speakers, but this range will eventually expand to earbuds and other accessories for smartphones and tablets. tablet.
From ocean plastic waste collected in regions from Mexico to Thailand, to the need to refine discarded bottles, fishing nets and other plastic pollutants into reusable polymers, it’s a large-scale activity — but the one that seems to engage the communities most affected by ocean plastic pollution.
It should be noted that you cannot just take plastic bottles and other debris found on the beach and immediately turn it into something new. Plastic needs to be broken down first. Local groups ensure that the different types of plastic are kept separate, which is easier said than done.
For example, a plastic bottle typically contains three different types of plastic: polyethylene terephthalate (PET) that makes up the bottle; polypropylene (PP) makes up the screw cap; and polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PET-G) resin as part of the label.
Tansley describes work as a “labor-intensive process”. However, it is an effort that not only helps the environment but also provides decent-wage jobs for people in coastal areas where plastic is being collected.
Also: Business travel, energy consumption in the spotlight as sustainability rises on the agenda
“It has created a whole small industry with the partners we are working with, especially in the collection and sorting of materials,” he explains.
Tide teams separate, clean and extrude the plastics ready for collection, where they are shipped to Switzerland.
Here, Tide’s research and development division processes and recycles plastic waste, along with partners from the Institute of Plastics Processing and Materials Technology and the Swiss University of Applied Sciences.
Plastics are broken down into polymers which are then converted into raw plastic materials. This recycled plastic is then combined and aligned to the needs of the resulting product, in this case four Boompods products.
They are Skim and Soundwave wireless headphones, along with the Soundflare and Rhythm Bluetooth micro-speakers, a more powerful Bluetooth speaker. Both speakers offer customizable lighting effects — and we hope that the sustainable way products are made will be something buyers will appreciate.
“The fact that you can buy something and you know you can be a small part of it makes a difference, I think that’s going to really resonate,” Tansley said, adding that he hopes products made from recycled ocean plastic “make a huge difference” — and the company wants to make more products from recycled ocean plastic.
“I like to think that if it really works, within a few years the entire product line will be oceanic plastic and it will give the brand a massive, proud identity,” he said.
