Recently, I have seen a lot of talk about the use of recycled plastic being turned into building blocks that can be used in many different types of projects. Numerous different companies have created these in many different ways.
One way to make these durable blocks from plastic is by stuffing a water bottle with “single-use” plastics, such as wrappers, plastic bags, and really anything small and thin that could be recycled. The key to these is compacting water bottles to the brim, as seen in the photo below.
This specific project is called EcoBrick. The really interesting thing about these is they also help with the removal of “carbon-intense petro-capital economy.” It basically stores carbon within the bottle. These plastics in bottles do not get sent back into the environment.
Regardless of what you may believe, these eco-bricks are very durable and can be used for multiple different projects. People have built benches, gardens, and even parks out of these blocks. These are different from other recycling techniques because it is about using regenerative techniques, rather than sustaining our resources. This is important because it is a new way to reduce our waste, which is exactly what we need! The best part about this is that anyone is capable of doing this and making a change!
Another amazing waste-reduction invention is from the company ByFusion. They recently created the ByBlock, which is “the first construction-grade building material made entirely from repurposed, often un-recyclable plastic waste.”These blocks can be used for sound walls, sheds, furniture, fencing, and many other landscaping or architectural uses.
They are created by compressing these plastics into blocks through a machine. They are even more durable than concrete, which can break whereas these plastic blocks cannot. You are even able to drill into these blocks, which can hold the weight of wood and other objects.
An important concept that ByFusion introduces is that plastic is not the problem, it is planning for how it can be used in the right ways. It is a strong material, and if we are able to find ways that it can be used for more than one day, and possibly years instead, plastic waste would be much easier to defeat.
The ByFusion platform has also brought community members together by creating jobs and making infrastructure. Working together is how we will be able to combat plastic waste as a whole.
It is important that we start to think outside of the box in order to reduce and even eliminate plastic waste and the toxins that we continue to put into our home. These two creations are live examples of how these easy solutions can create large impacts.