Turning waste into valuables

Hi,
So this post was requested on Twitter after our September Top Tips about recycling. Today we will be talking about how to turn complete waste into something reasonably valuable. This is basically a form of upcycling but to a more extreme level.

1. Ecobricks

So, almost a year ago we did a post about ecobricks, but they are such a good example of turning waste into valuables that we decided to put it here anyway.
Ecobricks are a building material made from plastic. The waste plastic is washed and then compacted into a clean plastic bottle (also waste). The bottle becomes very hard and durable. Multiple bottles can then be used as bricks and cemented together.
The 'bricks' are strong and do not decompose. For more info, read our post where we go into more detail.

2. Metals

Although this may seem like something not worth the time. When you separate the metals in waste (for example an old car), you can get usable metal out of it. Seeing as metal doesn't decompose over time, it can be used again and again. Some manufactured items contain precious or rare metals which are actually quite valuable. So if these are separated from the rest of the waste, they can be sold for the same price as they were before being manufactured.

3. Leather

Some leather companies will use the hides of already dead animals for their leather production. These skins often come from the meat/dairy industry and would otherwise be considered waste. However, certain companies claim to use these skins and save millions of tons of waste from landfills. These claims cannot always be trusted, seeing as, after many meat production procedures, the animal skins would not be reusable. But at least it's a start.

4. Paper byproduct

There are now hopes of turning a byproduct of paper production into quite valuable chemicals that can be used to make nylon. This method would have environmental benefits when it comes to energy usage and chemical waste. About 50 million tons of 'kraft lignin' are created in paper production each year. It would normally be burned, producing carbon dioxide, which then fuels the climate crisis. So this new solution is very exciting.

5. Energy

So this is the most problematic option on this list. Turning waste into energy is a widely used solution. Normally waste will be burned creating light and heat, which can be converted into electricity. With the current energy shortages, this seems like a great solution. However, the burning of waste releases huge amounts of CO2. It also destroys materials that could have been reused. So, this is a quite controversial form of producing electricity. I am hoping to write a post where I talk about this in more depth, so keep your eyes peeled.

Your Green World Blog Team💚

Sources:

https://eitrawmaterials.eu/turning-waste-into-valuable-resources-recycling-as-a-major-pillar-of-raw-materials-supply/
https://www.ameslab.gov/news/new-process-turns-paper-manufacturing-waste-into-valuable-chemicals
https://www.rts.com/blog/what-is-waste-to-energy/

Image:
This image, owned by Redwin Law (on flickr.com) is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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