The Philippines must confront its high levels of plastic pollution. The residues of this material have come to create a “sea of plastic”, completely invading the waters of one of the islands. This panorama, and the urgency of dealing with the problem, has led the Southeast Asian country to find an innovative alternative: pave their roads with recycled plastic.
To carry out the project and build the infrastructure it needs, the Philippine government is counting on the collaboration of the country’s main companies, such as San Miguel Corp and Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc, which are already paving roads, parking lots and the land of what which will be a new airport. All this, with recycled plastic.
According to San Miguel Corp, the material obtained by using plastic waste is just as resistant as traditional asphalt, and even more durable. Also, it’s a more sustainable and economical alternative. Let’s remember that plastic is a petroleum-derived material that cannot decompose and persists in the environment for long periods of time, causing great damage.
Another benefit of this initiative is that soft plastics such as discarded shopping bags, wrappers and containers can be recycled. This type of material is one of the most difficult to recycle, generating vast amounts of waste in landfills and clogging Philippine waterways.
Furthermore, in this way bitumen is not used for asphalting, a hydrocarbon whose production has a high environmental footprint.
The company San Miguel Corp, which built a road with almost a kilogram of recycled plastic, obtained the garbage from Nestlé and Unilever, two companies that have launched a plastic garbage collection program in the Philippines.
According to GAIA, the association dedicated to raising awareness about recycling, the Southeast Asian nation uses 48 million shopping bags and 164 million plastic bags every day. That is why waste management systems cannot cope.
This problem is repeated in other Asian countries, where the consumption of single-use plastics has increased disproportionately. China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam have become the top sources of plastic debris in the world’s oceans, according to environmental advocacy group Ocean Conservancy Inc and McKinsey & Co, a global consultancy.
Plastic pollution is a global problem and for this reason all alternatives aimed at reducing its impact on the planet must be taken into account.. The Philippines seeks to give plastic a second life and raise awareness about consumption habits, since for initiatives like these to be carried out, waste must be managed correctly.
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Sources:
Intriper
Magnet