Turning trash to treasure: Six ingenious ways waste materials are being reborn
Sometimes it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when facing a mission on the scale of saving the planet. It’s worth remembering, however, that we have one powerful weapon in our armoury: human creativity.
In this article, Evoque explores some eye-opening examples where innovation and invention have been intertwined with a focus on sustainability, giving new purpose to ‘waste’ that might have otherwise gone to landfill.
Chewing gum:
From sidewalk to skateboard
Cigarettes:
From butts to bricks
Nappies:
From landfill to pet litter
A ubiquitous and unsightly presence in our urban environments, chewing gum takes years to decompose. UK firm Gumdrop was created to give gum a second life, finding a way to transform this sticky mess into a valuable resource. They collect used chewing gum via Gumdrop Bins, sterilize it, and convert it into GUM-TEC®, a range of sustainable polymer compounds that can be used to make skateboards, shoe soles, and even coffee cups.
The most littered item on the planet, cigarette butts pose a significant environmental threat, generating 1.2 million tonnes of toxic waste each year. However, a team of scientists from RMIT University in Australia has discovered a way of using them as the foundation for construction materials. They are processed to extract the cellulose fibres, which are then incorporated into the brick-making process, reducing the need for virgin materials and diverting waste from landfill.
More than 96% of parents are estimated to use disposable nappies, meaning they make a substantial contribution to landfill waste along with other absorbent hygiene products (AHPs). Knowaste is aiming to tackle the issue through its patented recycling process, which separates the components before converting them into sanitised recycled plastic pellets and fibres, used in the manufacture of storage containers, packaging and insulation materials as well as pet bedding and litter.
Oysters:
From seafood waste to cement substitute
Coffee Grounds:
From cup to sea
Specialist fabrics:
From fires to fashion
Often discarded after their succulent contents have been enjoyed, oyster shells are now finding new life as a construction material. Researchers have developed a process to incorporate oyster shells into concrete, reducing the need for traditional cement, which is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.
An essential pick-me-up for billions of us every morning, coffee might be farmed sustainably but it creates tonnes of waste in the form of coffee grounds. German company Kaffeeform is aiming to close the loop, combining grounds with plant-based raw materials and natural fibres to create a lightweight material used to make a range of items – including reusable coffee cups.
Firefighter suits and bulletproof vests are built to fulfil a particular purpose and when they reach the end of their usable life they typically end up in landfill. Clothing company Vollebak stepped in with a vision to give these warm, soft, fire-resistant materials a new life and the Garbage Sweater was born.
All the examples above highlight the boundless possibilities that exist for reducing waste by transforming discarded materials into valuable resources. And encouragingly, human creativity means we can only expect to see more unexpected forms of recycling emerge as new frontiers of sustainability are explored.
Admittedly, the technologies and processes behind some of these approaches are highly complex and some applications are fairly niche. However, at Evoque we believe they play a valuable role in highlighting how we can redefine our relationship with waste and foster a more environmentally conscious society.
In the day-to-day of the insurance supply chain, realising the ambition to reuse and recycle more certainly does not necessarily need to be complex. Our business model, for example, is based not just on taking away salvage but on taking away the strain from insurers. We recover and reinstate items as far as possible, doing what we can to avoid waste-to-landfill and maximise cost recovery.
