Introduction
Plastic products are all around us, and we rely on them because they are cheap and versatile. But plastic does not decompose, and very few people actually take the effort to recycle the products they use. Walk across many beaches in the developing world and you will find more plastic waste littered across the sand than seabirds and marine animals.
However, if we transform Plastic into a means of exchange, we can take a step towards closing the production loop, while simultaneously empowering people at the bottom of the pyramid and reducing the amount of plastic waste that ends up in our oceans. This initiative would contribute directly towards achieving three of the UN’s sustainable development goals:
#1: No poverty
#8: Decent work and economic growth
#14: Life below water
How it works
By offering a secure and transparent system, based on blockchain technology, the aim is to build recycling infrastructure in developing countries by incentivizing local communities to collect and return plastic to a centralised facility. For each item brought into the centre, people receive an equivalent ‘credit’ i.e. the plastic currency. In theory, this currency can then be used as a fair and widely accepted form of exchange, with a fairly regulated equivalent price level.
The plastic is then recycled and repurposed, either by the bank or by the collectors, who have the option to utilise the recycling technology to create their own plastic-based products and sell them. The bank’s biggest customers will be large companies and manufacturers, both looking to make use of the plastic as well improve their CSR scores.
By leveraging blockchain technology, collectors have a secure digital wallet and the bank have a transparent view of the entire production-collection-recycling loop. Additionally, by digitising a physical material, it is possible to gamify and reward the best collectors, offering a plethora of partnership opportunities with retailers and other local businesses, elevating the entire business ecosystem.
Background on plastic pollution and impact
According to Science Magazine, roughly 12 billion tons of plastic waste is projected to be in landfills or the natural environment by 2050. Plastic finds its way into food chains as animals accidentally ingest pieces of plastic, which often leads to early death. It accumulates in the environment quickly as it is not biodegradable and can find its way into groundwater, surface water, and land ecosystems. When plastic is incinerated, it releases carcinogenic chemicals into the open air.
Additionally, the manufacture of plastic itself is energy-intensive, relying primarily on non-renewable resources, and creates many harmful toxins that affect ecosystems on both land and water.
Impact on improving financial inclusion
This concept is game-changing because it essentially creates a new currency market that simultaneously enables financial independence while incentivizing plastic waste cleanup. In developing nations, if a family that earns 1000 USD per year that obtains 60 USD from recycling plastic, that leads to a major impact in quality of life.
Challenges of implementation
Enabling the plastic currency to be used as an accepted means of exchange will be the biggest challenge. Currently, collectors receive payment in the form of cash, other goods such as fuel vouchers, or cryptocurrency. Often, collectors are homeless or from extremely underprivileged areas, so it’s important for companies who engage in plastic currency initiatives to consider the social impact on the wider community and provide fair and equitable payment.
The second challenge companies face is the cost of converting the recycled plastic into a second material. Because R&D is conducted in developed countries, costs associated with the development of a new polymer to incorporate the recycled plastic may be costly. In addition, the production of new polymers may be difficult to scale efficiently. Companies will have to rely on economies of scale for production to be cost effective and sustainable.
Examples already in action
One organization that is putting this concept into practice is the Plastic Bank. The Bank allows customers to exchange plastic at a competitive rate for money, items, or blockchain-secured digital tokens. It also supports social entrepreneurs by helping them establish small businesses that provide goods or services and accept plastic waste as currency. There is even an app that helps plastic collectors track how much they’ve collected and maintain a digital wallet for their earnings. Plastic received from customers is then sent to a recycling center and then sold to corporate clients at a premium.
Plastic Bank takes the issue of plastic pollution and tackles the solution in a new light. Instead of cleaning the ocean, they are targeting the source of the problem by preventing plastic from ending up as waste, disposed haphazardly in the environment. The first pilot site for the initiative was in Haiti, where plastic waste is left on the ground and washed into the ocean by rainwater. Through R&D, the first wave of bottles containing recycled plastic will hit shelves by late this year.
Thinking creatively about how we can use market-based solutions and new digital innovations like blockchain is one way we can enable dramatic change in the way we approach pollution reduction and socioeconomic development.
I really like this solution to limit plastic waste. Recently, a sperm whale washed up on the shores of Indonesia and had 11lbs of plastic inside its stomach (including flip flops, water bottles, plastic bags, etc.). I think this solution can help incentivize people to recycle plastic products (assuming the rewards were high enough), but am also wondering if there’s a way to be more efficient with the plastic that is recycled (i.e. plastic bags, colored plastics, styrofoam, etc.)