Best way to free the planet from plastic pollution
Cleanhub sets sails to protect our oceans
The plastic pollution crisis poses one of the largest threats to life on our planet. We are dedicated to implement a solution that works at scale.
Visit our website if you would like to contribute to the cause— www.cleanhub.io.
Consumers demand change, the planet needs action
The scientific facts are overwhelming. Only 9% of all plastic waste ever produced has been recycled, 12% has been incinerated, and 79% (!) has accumulated in the natural environment (UN Environment Report, 2018).
More than 8 million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans every year. Projections indicate that the problem will deteriorate rapidly. Plastic consumption is expected to double within the next 20 years. By 2050, plastics could account for 20% of oil consumption, 15% of greenhouse gas emissions, and there could be more plastics than fish in the ocean (The European Green Deal, 2020).
Plastic itself is good — its the consequences to the environment that are bad.
Plastic is not easily replaced. The material is cheap and easy to manufacture, durable, strong for its weight, electrically and thermally insulative, as well as resistant to shock, corrosion, chemicals and water. Its properties constitute a significant barrier of entry that is difficult to overcome for alternative materials. Whilst some new innovations seem promising, their potential for the large scale substitution of plastic, appears not yet on the horizon.
Plastic will continue to pollute our environments. While reducing the use of plastic is critical, it is neither enough nor fast enough. We need to start cleaning up — today.
Pollution is a symptom of weak waste management industries
High-income countries tend to have relatively effective waste management industries and therefore only about 2 percent of plastic waste ends up littering the environment (Jambeck et al., 2015).
More than 90 percent of global plastic pollution occurs in low-to-middle-income countries (LMICs). Research suggests, that in LMICs 80–90 percent of plastic waste is at risk of polluting rivers and oceans (Our world in data, 2018).
Environmentally protective plastic waste management industries require producers to pay for the recovery of their materials. While the recovery of positive value plastics (i.e. mainly PET, PE and PP) can be profitable on its own, the recovery of negative value plastics (i.e. wrappers, straws, plastic bags) generates a loss.
Germany, the world’s recycling leader, follows a dual system in which producers pay a fee for the recovery of the plastic waste that they distribute (Der Grüne Punkt).
The same doesn’t currently exist in LMICs - the gateways for plastic that enters our oceans. As a result, negative value plastics are not collected and constitute the vast majority of plastic material that can be found in the natural environment.
We have witnessed, that waste management industries in the most polluting countries tend to be characterised by severe market fragmentation, absence of price, volume and stakeholder transparency within the supply chains.
We recognize that problem and build a system that is fit for local conditions to recover negative value plastic from the environment at scale.
Cleanhub’s principled approach
Cleanhub builds software to connect and empower local waste managers in high-impact coastal regions.
As a company, we follow 5 principles that lead the way on our mission to free the planet from plastic pollution:
- Recover all plastics: We collect all types of plastic and find appropriate recovery options. Our main focus is negative value plastics that would otherwise be left behind. We never compete with existing waste collection but are an addition to it.
- Empower local communities: Communities around the world should be able to cope with their own plastic waste. To reach that goal we foster local entrepreneurship within a reliable framework. Together with our network of safe recovery endpoints we provide off-take agreements. Contributions enable the payment for collection, sorting, transportation and final treatment.
- Promote plastic responsibility: The first step in the waste management hierarchy is reducing waste. Plastic is a great packaging material but it should be used responsibly. We only work with customers that have a waste reduction strategy for their packaging in place. Plastic neutrality may never be the easy way out.
- Recover environmentally friendly: We follow three steps when choosing the recovery method. Firstly, we follow the waste management hierarchy, i.e. Recycling > Energy Recovery > Landfill. Secondly, we do life cycle analyses and choose the method with the least C02 emissions. Finally, we choose the one with the best technology, if there is more than one of the same recovery methods in place.
- Enforce transparency: Transparency goes beyond tracking where the material was collected and where it was recovered. Transparency for us means that our collection and recovery partners also need to comply to a code of conduct for the health of their employees as well as the health of the environment.
How can you participate with your business?
Consumers demand change, the planet needs action. Become a leader on plastic sustainability. Set yourself apart from competition as consumers are looking for responsible brands.
Together we define a realistic strategy for your company to become plastic positive. You can engage Cleanhub to recover 2x, 5x, 10x of your plastic emissions from high-impact regions on a recurring basis.
Impact is only worth as much as it is measurable. Our software keeps account of the person, quantity, quality and location of all activities as proof of work. We believe transparency is the tipping stone for change and provide evidence for every tonne of plastic that we recover.
Get in touch if you are interested to learn more.
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Visit our website if you would like to contribute to the cause — www.cleanhub.com, or write to me directly on linkedin.
