Ocean Bound Plastic
Ocean bound plastic is a resource that is at risk of ending up in the ocean. Specifically, plastic that is found within 50km of a coastline, or 200m of rivers or shorelines and fishing material that ends up in the ocean.
We asked Angus Ware, Co-Founder of Heliograf, a Sydney based design company about the importance of Ocean Bound Plastic (OBP) in a circular economy.
Recycling should always be the last step – it's much better to reduce, reuse and rethink waste.
Angus Ware, Co-Founder of Heliograf
RecycleSmart: Why is it important for consumers to buy products made from recycled ocean bound plastic?
Angus: Products made from certified recycled ocean bound plastic stop plastic becoming a problem in the ocean, rather than cleaning it up after it's already there, and supports the collection and management of waste in developing countries.
If we create high-value, long-lasting items from the waste collected, we can sequester that plastic so it never becomes an environmental problem again.
RecycleSmart: Why is ocean bound plastic everyone’s problem?
Angus: Ocean plastic is everyone's problem because plastic pollution has far reaching impacts on the ocean, global ecosystem, and our health. But the source of ocean plastic isn't an equal problem.
Ocean plastic is predominantly caused by inequality in developing countries in our region where a range of economic and social factors force people to use disposable plastics they have no choice but to throw out. Ocean bound plastic addresses this at the source by incentivising recycling and funding waste management in those places.
We can make a difference, not just through our actions at the recycling bin but before we buy anything at all. We can make a difference at the start of the product life cycle, not just the end of it: rethinking and redesigning our products and economy so there is no waste.
What can you do, as an individual, to help with ocean bound plastic:
Reduce your seafood consumption
Ghost gear is estimated to make up 10% of the plastic waste in our oceans, but represents a much higher proportion of large plastics found floating at the surface.¹Limit single use plastics
Switch to reusable products and remember to ask when ordering out.
Support companies that use OBP like Oceanworks, The Horse or Heliograf
Check out our blog post about Aussie brands using recycled resources.Support organisations like Sea Shepherd or The Ocean Cleanup
Donate or get involved with their operations to rid the ocean and waterways of plastic.
Clean up what you see
Pick up plastic waste you find near the beach and dispose of it properly.
More than 2.7 billion plastic items end up in waterways across NSW every year.² 14 million tons of plastic ends up in the ocean each year, making up 80% of all marine debris found from the surface to the deep-sea.³
Climate change was a central issue in the most recent election: it’s clear Australians care about the future of our planet.
We can choose to view plastic pollution as someone else's problem, or we can see it as our responsibility, no matter where we live. No change is too small to make a big difference!
Sources:
Greenpeace.de - Ghost Gear: Abandoned fishing nets haunting our oceans
ABC.net.au - Single-use plastic bag ban comes in effect in NSW
Iucn.org - International Union of Conservation of Nature on Marine Plastic Pollution
