Ocean Legacy Foundation creates “first” 100% recycled marine plastic pellets for lumber replacement

14 Dec 2022 --- The Ocean Legacy Foundation is producing the “first” commercially available plastic pellet in North America made from 100% recycled ocean plastics, branded Legacy Plastic. The pellets are made from high-grade post-consumer processed recycled plastic recovered during the ocean, shoreline, and marine equipment cleanups.

The Ocean Legacy Foundation is a Canadian non-profit organization that develops and implements worldwide plastic pollution programs to end ocean plastic pollution. Legacy Plastic is plastic lumber that consists of recovered marine gear such as fishing ropes, buoys, floats, oyster trays and other anthropogenic plastic debris. It is reprocessed for use in the manufacturing of new durable products. 

There are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic waste estimated to be in the world’s oceans, according to National Geographic; 8.3 million metric tons of plastic are discarded in the sea yearly, of which 236,000 are ingestible microplastics that marine creatures mistake for food. 

“Legacy Plastic contributes to the plastic circular economy and reduces land and ocean pollution. By using Legacy Plastic, companies become a part of the solution in fighting the ocean plastic pollution crisis,” says Chloé Dubois, co-founder of Ocean Legacy Foundation.

Ocean Legacy Foundation member standing with collected plastic waste from the oceans. Plastic lumber replacement 
Legacy Plastic can be used to replace many traditional lumber applications. The recycled pellets can be converted into many applications, but currently the foundation is partnering with Full Circle Plastics to provide companies with recycled plastic lumber solutions for commercial and other applications.

“We’re excited about a new partnership with Full Circle Plastics from Nobleford, Canada. Full Circle Plastics’ line of plastic lumber used in commercial, industrial and residential construction are products that replace many traditional lumber applications, such as planter boxes, agriculture fence posts, outdoor decking construction, and a wide array of domestic outdoor furniture,” says Gil Yaron, sales and marketing director for Ocean Legacy Foundation.

The sourced plastic materials fall into three sources. The first used marine gear from fishing and aquaculture operations along the Pacific coast recovered at or through Ocean Legacy depots. 

Secondly, shoreline plastic recovered from shoreline cleanups undertaken by Ocean Legacy’s cleanup expeditions and other partner organizations that conduct shoreline cleanups along the Pacific Northwest coastline. Lastly, Ocean Legacy works with ocean plastics recovered from ocean recovery expeditions.

Ocean plastic crisis
The world is facing an “ocean emergency,” according to global leaders. If current trends continue, the amount of plastic waste polluting the oceans will grow to 29 million metric tons a year by 2040 – the equivalent of 50kg for every meter of coastline in the world, UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres previously told PackagingInsights.

The UN’s Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal, followed a collapsed effort in March this year, in which leaders failed to reach agreements on how to govern and protect the 64% of high seas that lie beyond territorial borders.

At the time, roughly 1.2% of the oceans were protected from illegal fishing, waste dumping, deep-sea mining and other practices that pollute the oceans and destroy marine life whereas now the figure sits at 8%. Ocean Legacy Foundation members diving to collect ocean plastics for Legacy Plastic. 

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, plastic makes up 80% of all marine debris from surface waters to deep-sea sediments. “Ocean Legacy is creating a program that makes plastic recycling viable and profitable, which provides us with an economically sustainable revenue stream,” states Yaron.

Company adoption
The Ocean Legacy Foundation believes that companies can use recycled marine plastics in their products, continuing to close the loop on plastic management systems. “We are thrilled with the amount of interest that [Legacy Plastic] has received from companies that want to incorporate recycled content into their products,” continues Dubois. 

“This is a huge milestone for Ocean Legacy Foundation as creating opportunities that bolster the use of materials collected during cleanup into new products will continue to advance the success of the plastic circular economy.”

“Legacy Plastic allows companies to meet their sustainability goals to manufacture their products using local, high-quality post-consumer recycled content resins that have a relatively lower carbon footprint when compared to virgin plastic production,” adds Yaron. 

Companies can buy the lumber at Coaldale Home Hardware, Delcan Building Materials, select Windsor Plywood, Lloydminster Co-op and SKC Farm Sales – all located in Canada, or request a shipment.

Fiber to plastic
Major paper packaging groups and forestry standards authorities froze their operations in Russia in a show of protest against the invasion of Ukraine. 

Some of the industry’s most prominent fiber-packaging corporations – like Stora Enso and Huhtamaki – announced they will be ending all trade with Russia due to the “unacceptable” war in Ukraine. This creates a gap in the market for lumber as Russia was one of these businesses’ major suppliers. 

Therefore, an opening is created for alternative solutions, such as Legacy Plastic, as fiber companies’ lumber supplies are restricted. 

By Sabine Waldeck