Wouldn’t it be great if recycled single-use plastic bags turned into park benches you could later sit on? Well, that’s exactly what’s happening to the plastic waste in the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Roughly 80 percent of the plastic recyclables collected throughout the provincial capital are now being processed by recycling company Goodwood Plastic Products so they can be turned into building blocks.
The Canadian company is building a new standard for sustainability by recycling the bulk of their municipal plastic waste into lumber, which can later be drilled, nailed, and handled the same way as wooden lumber – but without any of the same deterioration.
Thus far, the lumber has been used to make everything from picnic tables and park benches to agricultural posting and guardrail structures, and the company hopes its business model will inspire other regions to launch similar ventures.
