the plastic flamingo cleans, shreds + turns ocean plastic waste into construction planks

THE PLASTIC FLAMINGO – RECYCLING PLASTIC INTO ECO-LUMBERS

founded in 2019 and also known as the plaf, the plastic flamingo is a social enterprise that collects and transforms plastics in the philippines into better products. the group of recyclers aims to fight the country’s plastic waste crisis — the philippines is the third-biggest polluter in the world — by turning bottles, soft plastics, and sachets into planks that can be used as a building material.

by collecting post-consumer plastics, the plaf aims to compensate the material’s footprint by giving them a second-life while educating communities about the plastic crisis.

THE PLASTIC FLAMINGO COLLECTS ANY KIND OF PLASTIC WASTE IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND FROM LOCAL COMMUNITIES

ocean plastic pollution is one of the world’s biggest environmental problems. its impact costs the world at least US$8 billion dollars per year. 60% of marine plastic waste has originated from south-east asia, particularly from china, indonesia, philippines, vietnam, sri lanka and thailand. in fact, in the philippines, 500,000 metric tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year.

in order to offer a solution to fight ocean plastic pollution in the philippines, the plastic flamingo collects any kind of plastic waste in the environment and from local communities, schools, factories, buildings, etc. the plastics are then cleaned, dried, and shredded. the resulting plastic flakes — the main ingredient for their upcycled products — are then extruded into posts and planks called eco-lumbers, which can be used in fencing, decking, and even in disaster-relief shelters.

PLASTIC FLAKES ARE TURNED INTO RECYCLED BUILDING MATERIALS

to create the eco-lumbers, the plaf mixes the flakes into a formulation where they undergo an extrusion process and are molded into different shapes. ‘regarding our planks, we have done research on the constitution of sachets and have found a formula that will make it possible to recycle up to 30% in the mix to create the profiles,’ said the plastic flamingo. the company is also expanding their product line and will be revealing a larger range of products by the beginning of 2022.

by creating eco-lumbers, the plaf ‘hopes to kill two birds with one stone. ‘adressing plastic pollution is our main mission, but by turning this waste into eco-lumbers, we hope to contribute to the housing sector by providing durable and maintenance-free alternatives. this country currently has an estimated housing backlog of 6.5 million and if this is not addressed appropriately, this can increase to 22 million within the next two decades,’ said anne-sophie van der spek, the company’s chief product officer, in ‘planks of promise, designing for change’, a video made by their partner the alliance to end plastic waste.

building blocks