We all learned in elementary school that “plastic takes a long time to breakdown” once it’s used and ends up in the dump or in ocean. But, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, plastic doesn’t actually biodegrade:

“Plastics do not biodegrade, although, under the influence of solar UV radiations, plastics do degrade and fragment into small particles, termed microplastics.”

Plastic, rather than turning back into organic matter, simple decomposes into smaller and smaller particles, ending up inside of the fish we eat or blanketing the ocean floor, causing unknown damage to the ocean ecosystem. Image credit: ingridtaylar

Many groups and organizations have been formed to clean up plastic that ends up washing ashore on our beaches, but the vast majority of plastic pollution ends up in the ocean, never to be seen again until it forms giant floating islands of trash, waiting to be broken down by the sun’s rays. The planet has a growing addiction to cheap and industrious plastic, growing exponentially every year with no end in sight.

Fortunately, a couple of conscious thinking entrepreneurs from Australia have come up with a genius plan to not only help clean up this mess, but empower people to make a living while doing it. They have formed the world’s first Plastic Bank, where people can turn in plastic waste they collected and trade it for usable goods to help their families and communities.

Plastic is a valuable resource that can be used as an alternative currency both in the the third world and in the first world. These plastic banks will recycle the plastic at the location, turning it into 3D printing materials that can either be manufactured into goods on site or sold to other manufacturers. Here’s is a quick run down of how the process works:

Visit the plastic bank website and support them here.

This article is for the betterment of mankind. You may republish this article freely under a Creative Commons license with attribution to WeSupportOrganic.com