Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is still the solution

The world faces a monumental plastic waste problem. While plastics play a key role in modern society, we have not yet figured out how to properly and effectively dispose of plastic waste. Of the 350 million metric tons of plastic waste generated globally each year, the majority ends up in landfills, incinerators, or released into our ecosystems and waterways. 

“Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”, in that order of priority, continues to be the proven pathway to solving the global plastics problem. While reducing virgin plastics production remains the primary solution, exhausting all methods for efficiently and sustainably managing plastic waste is crucial, as global demand for plastic increases each year. Freepoint Eco-Systems is committed to the global net zero transition by establishing a circular plastics lifecycle through the use of advanced recycling technologies.

Reduce

Plastic production has outpaced the world’s ability to recycle it. Reducing global virgin-plastic production remains an imperative to protect ourselves and our planet from pollution by plastic.

By transforming end-of-life plastic waste to create new, widely applicable material for reuse in new products, advanced recycling reduces the demand for fossil fuel-based polymers in virgin plastic production. The production of virgin plastic relies heavily on oil and gas extraction; advanced recycling, when deployed jointly with mechanical recycling methods, can cut down on fossil oil production by an estimated 7.7 million barrels per day. Less virgin plastic production ensures less environmental harm, and reducing virgin plastic is critical to keep ourselves and our ecosystems healthy.

Reuse

Our society is flooded with single-use plastics, designed to be discarded and inevitably sent to landfills or burned in incinerators. Over 40% of all plastic is used just once. Plastic packaging, bags, and beverage containers are the largest contributors to single-use plastic waste pollution.

Freepoint mitigates this widespread lack of reuse by recapturing single-use products into the plastics lifecycle. Advanced recycling transforms end-of-life plastic back into its original hydrocarbon form that the industry can reuse to produce new plastic, resulting in a fully-usable material that can be recycled indefinitely.

Recycle

Traditional, or mechanical recycling, uses physical processing methods, like shredding and melting, to break down plastics for reuse.  While mechanical recycling is an important and widely utilized technology, it has limitations. Less than 20% of all plastic waste generated annually can be recycled through mechanical processes. Moreover, mechanically recycled plastic is a degraded product that is not suitable for many common uses, and plastic can only be mechanically recycled a few times due to this degradation. Our society must recycle more plastic once it reaches the end of its life, and elevate viable technologies to accomplish this goal.

Advanced recycling breaks down plastic waste into its original monomers and basic elements, to be recomposed into polymers for manufacturing new plastic products. Freepoint Eco-Systems’ approach captures large volumes plastic waste, eliminates contaminants, and transforms it into virgin-equivalent supply for reuse in a wider span of applications. When deployed in tandem, mechanical recycling and advanced recycling can recycle up to 100% of all plastic waste.

Achieving plastics circularity is at the core of Freepoint’s mission, and advanced recycling is the most efficient and affordable solution to close the waste loop. The current plastics lifecycle is linear: plastics are produced using fossil fuels, used by the consumer, and discarded. Advanced recycling converts hard-to-recycle materials into fully usable materials to be recycled indefinitely, closing the waste loop and advancing global progress towards net-zero emissions.

According to a recent report from Plastics Europe, improving plastics circularity is one of the most efficient and reliable ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the plastic production cycle. The report calls for reuse to minimize single-use plastic applications, streamlined waste collection and sorting, and plastics designed with mechanical and advanced recycling in mind.

Closing the plastics loop requires collaboration of stakeholders across all phases of the plastics lifecycle. Freepoint Eco-Systems is doing its part by maximizing global recycling capacity through advanced technologies, and encouraging our communities to rethink the way we produce, use, and dispose of plastics for a healthier, greener, and cleaner planet. 

Learn more about how to transform your hard-to-recycle plastic waste into new products and packaging with Freepoint Eco-Systems: https://freepointecosystems.com/suppliers/