Of all the things that could be made from the massive volume of plastic waste adrift in the world's oceans, I wouldn't have put vacuum cleaners at the top of the obvious list. But that's exactly what Swedish home appliance manufacturer Electrolux is doing with a new recycling project.
The Vac from the Sea project aims to pull plastic debris from the garbage patch areas in several major areas. Using plastic gathered, the company will make six concept vacuum cleaners to bring attention to this enormous environmental problem.
Cecilia Nord, a vice president at Electrolux told Reuters, "There are plastic islands, some several times the size of the state of Texas, floating in our oceans. Yet on land, we struggle to get hold of enough recycled plastics to meet the demand for sustainable vacuum cleaners."
I'll let her off the hook for calling the patches "islands" -- most of the mess forms a soup that's more apparent underwater -- because her heart is in the right place. But the lack of recycled plastic statement makes me wonder.
The difficulty with plastic recycling, as I understand it, is more that products like water bottles and certain types of packaging have to be downcycled, meaning they usually get turned into lesser quality products with fewer desirable characteristics than virgin plastic. While researchers are making advancements in plastic recycling technology, being able to affordably turn PET back into PET is still years away. We've got plenty of plastic on land, we just don't have the recycling capabilities to deal with all of it successfully.
At first blush, I thought Electrolux's project was going to be like last year's thwarted Kaisei expedition, where the company would trawl the high seas for tons of plastic to recycle. The Kaisei folks soon realized that the fuel required would negate the gains. Plus, the plastic is difficult to collect in large quantities without disturbing marine life. Thankfully that doesn't seem to be Electrolux's aim. Instead, gathering enough to make six cleaners sounds doable.
Last week Electrolux combed the waters near Smögen and Kungshamn on the Swedish coastline to collect plastic. I'd like this endeavor even more if it involved enormous investments in advancing plastic recycling technology, but have to admit that it's clever. Now they've got me curious about what kind of vacuum cleaners they're going to design. Maybe while they're at it they can make one that can suck crude oil out of the Gulf.
Photo: Earlier this year, the 5 Gyres organization hauled in this plastic from the ocean on an expedition. Credit: Stiv Wilson, 5 Gyres.
Tags: Green Appliances, Green Tech, Plastic, Pollution, Waste and Recycling
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