Can plastic from the ocean be recycled?
Theoretically, yes. There are a handful of organisations whose mission is to collect plastic from the ocean and convert it into a whole range of so-called ‘ocean plastic products’. Businesses have also jumped on board.
What can ocean plastic be recycled into, you may ask? The Ocean Cleanup creates recycled ocean plastic sunglasses. Adidas announced their creation of shoes from ocean plastic (the ‘Ocean Ultraboost Sneaker’). Sunglasses company Norton Point also created a pair of sunnies made from plastic collected from the ocean. Brands like Remnant Bikinis also make ocean plastic swimwear created from ghost fishing nets and, importantly, ocean bound plastic (more on that below).
But recycled ocean plastic doesn’t exist on a large scale. And in some instances, only a small percentage of the plastic in an item is actually recycled from ocean plastic. Soapmaking company Method released a soap bottle made from recycled plastic – but only 10% was sourced from the ocean. The Seaqual Initiative has also adopted a mission to transform marine plastic into yarn. However, its yarn is only 10% marine plastic and 90% PET from land. Adidas’ claims that their shoe is made from ocean plastic may also be a little confusing – as ocean bound plastic is actually used to make it.
