We’re all aware of the environmental issue threatening our planet in the context of plastic waste. Plastic, while recyclable, accounts for a tremendous component of the amount of waste we as humans produce on a daily basis, and it can be difficult to distinguish ways in which to reuse plastic in a manner that benefits the environment.
Not for one Kenyan woman, though, explains an article from The Good News Network. This brilliant, young innovator has determined a way to create bricks from plastic that are five times stronger than concrete, believe it or not.
“Nzambi Matee says she was ‘tired of being on the sidelines’ while civil servants struggled against plastic waste in the capital city of Nairobi, so the materials engineer created a product that is 5 to 7 times stronger than concrete.
“Founder of Gjenge Makers, which transforms plastic waste into durable building materials, Matee also designed the machines that manufacture the bricks in her factory.
“Getting dumps of plastic low and high-density polyethylene and polypropylene from local packaging plants for free, Gjenge Makers produces a variety of different paving stones after the plastic polymer is heated and mixed with sand.
“‘There is waste they cannot process anymore; they cannot recycle. That is what we get,’ Matee told Reuters.
“The result is a line of versatile building materials pressed via hydraulic machine into different thicknesses, that sell in a variety of colors that cost an average of $7.70 per square meter,” the article says.
This incredible woman and her remarkable initiative has already given over 100 people employment and produces roughly 1500 bricks a day, the article states. She explained to Reuters that she and her company “have recycled about 20 metric tons of plastic waste since the company was founded in 2018,” says the article.
If this isn’t some inspiring news, I’m not sure what is.
ontheedgeofeverything 