19 tons of plastic enter the ocean every minute. Yet this waste can be an invaluable resource! Make recycling this waste a profitable and job-generating activity: this is the bet of the Plastic Odyssey team. Merchant navy officers, sales manager and engineer, these young entrepreneurs decided to build an ambitious project to raise awareness of recycling plastic waste and share know-how for emerging countries.
A shipping to share low-tech and open-source plastic recycling technologies
For 3 years, the Plastic Odyssey team will sail the seas of the world on a ship to fight against plastic pollution. The expedition will stop in emerging countries to encourage local waste reduction initiatives and the creation of small recycling plants. At each stopover, Plastic Odyssey will share low-tech and open-source recycling technologies to promote the development of micro-entrepreneurship and the circular economy. Training in sorting and recycling plastics will also be offered.
This project does not aim to collect the plastic present in the oceans but to act upstream, by working with the local populations on depolluting solutions, so that the terrestrial waste does not end up in the oceans.
The first ship that advances thanks to recycled plastic
The ship will be ready to go in the second half of 2020. Measuring 40 meters in length, it will operate using fuel made from plastic waste thanks to a pyrolysis plant installed at the rear of the boat: a great first in the field of navigation.
For 3 years, he will successively travel the coasts of Africa, Latin America, and Asia to raise awareness of plastic pollution in the oceans, encourage the reduction of plastic and its recycling and transform plastic waste into resources.
The fight against plastic pollution: a major social issue
The fight against plastic pollution is a concern that Crédit Agricole shares with Plastic Odyssey. The Group was already a partner of Plastic Odyssey in 2018, during the prototyping phase of the project. Crédit Agricole, via 16 entities (1), is continuing this commitment by supporting Plastic Odyssey’s approach with € 1.2 million over 5 years. The support provided for this expedition is in line with the Societal Project of the Crédit Agricole Group.
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