Evian introduces a label-free, 100% recycled plastic bottle
When a plastic bottle ends up in a recycling plant, the label attached to it usually isn’t recycled. This is because the labels are made from a different type of plastic than the PET used in bottles. And while they’re technically recyclable, most recycling facilities don’t have the adequate Read More...
Startup in Uganda upcycles plastic bottles into building materials and PPE
The city of Gulu, Uganda, is six hours from the nearest recycling plant – so most plastic bottles collected in the city end up trashed or burned. However, in a small pilot facility that’s now operating behind a restaurant in the city’s downtown, a startup called Takataka Plastics is testing a Read More...
Scientists find gut bacteria in superworms that breaks down plastic
Polystyrene is a type of plastic that’s used to make a variety of ubiquitous products like packaging containers, disposable cups, and insulating materials. The problem, of course, lies in the fact that when thrown in landfills or littered in the environment, the plastic takes several hundred Read More...
Major brands could soon sell their bottled products in compostable packaging
Globally around 300 million tons of plastic is made from fossil fuels every year, which is a major contributor to the climate crisis. Most of this is not recycled and contributes to the scourge of microplastics in the world’s oceans. Among the main trouble-makers in this pollution crisis are Read More...
McDonald’s to remove plastic from its Happy Meal toys
Last year, two schoolgirls set up a petition to urge McDonald’s and Burger King to stop giving out plastic toys with children's meals. Now, the activism of the two British girls is finally paying off as now both fast-food chains have pledged to remove plastic toys from their kids' meals, with Read More...
New York is bringing down the hammer on plastic bottles
Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order banning the sale of single-use plastic beverage bottles on city-owned and -leased properties — which means the bottles could vanish from an area nearly equivalent to a quarter of the city. The move also bars city Read More...
Scientists figure out a way to recycle plastic hundreds of times
Currently, people in the UK are recycling nearly 45 percent of their plastic waste, and that number is expected to rise in the following years. However, one of the problems with current plastic recycling methods is that you end up with a lower-quality plastic with worse properties than the Read More...
80% of this city’s recyclable plastic is turned into useful products
Wouldn’t it be great if recycled single-use plastic bags turned into park benches you could later sit on? Well, that’s exactly what’s happening to the plastic waste in the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Roughly 80 percent of the plastic recyclables collected throughout the provincial capital Read More...
California city takes lead in ruling out disposable coffee cups
As it becomes increasingly important to change our consumer practices to fight the plastic crisis, Berkeley, California, has started the year off with the right environmental footprint by declaring war on disposable coffee cups. On January 1, the city rolled out the nation’s most comprehensive Read More...
Britain’s push to take the plastic out of period products
Sanitary products are the fifth most common item found on Europe’s beaches, more widespread than single-use coffee cups, cutlery or straws. In fact, it’s estimated that 700,000 panty liners, 2.5m tampons, and 1.4m sanitary towels are flushed down the toilet every day in the UK alone. To stop Read More...