Plastic group runs recycling workshop
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Clean up campaigners in the Far North have passed on their marine litter recycling tips to fellow conservationists.
The Durness-based Plastic@Bay organisation is spearheading efforts over clearing local beaches of a constant stream of plastic waste and finding a new use for the material.
In its first year Plastic@Bay collected nearly a staggering 5000lbs of plastic from just one of the north’s most beautiful beaches.
The organisation, which is headed by geophysicist Dr Julien Moreau, were also awarded £65,000 for a unique marine recycling centre - believed to be the first of its type in Scotland.
Thanks to the money from SSE’s Sustainable Development Fund, the Marine Plastic Recycling Centre is based in Durness - mainland Britain’s most north westerly village.
Marine plastic pollution washed up on local beaches is recycled into useful objects for resale, such as clocks.
Plastic@Bay recently hosted its first recycling workshop with Green Hive, a community initiative based in Nairn.
Green Hive is starting to build a community workshop to recycle and upcycle local plastic waste and members visited Plastic@Bay at the Plastic Lab to see first hand the reality of recycling locally sourced plastic pollution in a community based workshop.
The Nairn group's visit started with a trip to Balnakeil Beach for a beach clean.
Participants collected plastic and divided it into four catgories – fishing ropes, nets and components, Ministry of Defence flares and parachute fragments, household and miscellaneous – mostly unidentifiable fragments of plastic.
It was found that, out of 7.5kg collected, 6kg were unrecoverable and 1.5kg could be recycled in the workshop.
Dr Moreau said: "This exercise highlights the reality of recycling litter and pollution.
"Most has been in the environment for so long that it has degraded into smaller parts, usually unsuitable for recycling."
The group then went on to recycle a selection of high density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic, including,milk bottles and lids, domestic bathroom and kitchen product bottles, donated to Green Hive by the people of Nairn, and fishing ropes collected from Balnakeil Beach, respectively.
Dr Moreau shredded the HPDE into fine plastic multicoloured granules for the compression oven and then moulded them into a funky clock.
Everyone got a turn to cut up some ropes, add them into the feeder tube of the injection mould and make a letter each to spell Green Hive.
The session was wrapped with a discussion of Plastic@Bay's 'Circular Economy Model 'as a prototype for other workshops.
Dr Moreau said: "At Plastic@Bay we believe that tackling plastic pollution is a full time job, and by recycling the pollution we collect and selling it, we can become self sustainable
"Our profits can be funnelled to back into supporting staff, financing remediation, education and research projects."
He added: “The group from Green Hive were enthusiastic and we are looking forward to seeing their workshop up and running, and collaborating with them in the future.”
Plastic@Bay is available to give workshops on recycling plastic pollution and adapting a circular economy model.
The group can be contacte by email: joan.darcy@plasticatbay.org
