SA Affordable Housing May - June 2019 // Issue: 76 | Page 6

NEWS
Ground-breaking upcycling
process launches soon
A local company is turning a ‘tragic plastic’ problem into a
nation building solution.
By The Center of Regenerative Design and Collaboration
I
magine if all South Africa’s unrecycled plastic waste, at
1 100 000 million tons per year, could create thousands
of jobs, clean our environment and help build our
houses, hospitals, schools and roads.
Don Thompson, the CEO of The Center of Regenerative
Design and Collaboration (CRDC), is making this a reality
through his invention of a process that can turn any plastic
– dirty or clean and in any form – into the very building
blocks of sustainable development.
The products, EcoArena PRA (Pre-Conditioned Resin
Aggregate) and Ecoblock, are innovative environmentally
friendly products which incorporate regenerated waste
plastic particles combined with a standard sand-cement
mixture to produce a highly resistant, durable cement or
cement block, while providing a viable upcycling usage of
this waste material.
The product has been tested and applied in Costa Rica
over the past two years with great success. CRDC is also
collaborating with international US chemicals giant, Dow, in
the development of EcoArena in a bid to develop a lead
initiative for the alliance to end plastic waste.
In South Africa, CRDC has partnered with a leading
operations company that has extensive expertise and a long
track record in on-site waste management, plastic recycling,
waste to energy and implementation of zero waste to
landfill solutions.
THE CASE STUDY
In Costa Rica, Thompson has been working with Pedregal,
the largest cement and concrete block company in the
country, and in collaboration with DOW, the American
multinational chemical corporation.
The aim is to use 4 000t of plastic waste a month for the
EcoArena technology. The feasibility of the product as an
environmental breakthrough is proven, and as a
commercially viable and profitable commodity it also meets
sustainable development requirements on all levels.
Pedregal began testing the use of EcoArena in their CMU
concrete blocks, having achieved successful technical
results and compliance with international standards (ASTM
and C90). Pedregal then introduced EcoArena to all their
concrete products under the prefix ECO.
Sales and marketing director of Pedregal, David Zamora,
says, “This breakthrough in transforming plastic and using it
in the same way as you would conventional aggregate is a
game-changer. Not only can we conduct our business in a
more sustainable way but we can also help solve one of the
biggest problems we have created as human beings – that
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MAY - JUNE 2019
of plastic contamination. This is the very essence of our
circular economy and one in which the construction
industry is helping the plastic industry solve a waste
problem by turning it back into a raw material that can be
used in any construction on the planet.”
KEY BENEFITS OF CRDC ECOARENA PRODUCT
IN CONCRETE AND CONSTRUCTION
• 10% increase in strength
• 8% to 16% decrease in weight (with 5% or 10% PRA)
• Increase in thermal properties
• Same fire resistance as with standard concrete
• EcoArena PRA can be used in pressed concrete products,
in bagged cement or poured concrete
• Creates lower dependency on other raw materials
• Obvious marketing benefits
• Reduce cement industries’ carbon footprint and carbon
tax bill (South Africa)
ENVIRONMENTAL
• Supports and grows the UN Sustainable
Development Goals
• Reduces carbon footprints by eliminating plastic to
landfill and plastic pollution (1t of mixed plastics going
to landfill has an emissions factor of 21.3842kg CO 2 )
• All types of plastic can be upcycled therefore no costly
separation is required
• Reduce plastic pollution in rivers, oceans, cities and
impact on landfills
• Supports zero waste to landfill, plastic producer
responsibility, government programmes and initiatives
• Waste plastic permanently eliminated from
the environment
• CRDC and EcoArena are foundation partners of Habitat
for Humanity
SOCIAL AND SMME
• SMME and job creation from waste plastic collection,
plastic shredding SMMEs and transportation
• Cleaner cities and healthier environments
• Support SMME concrete block manufacturers
• Helps support the building of better social housing in
Africa with a product that is stronger to benefit the
environment and society
THE CASE FOR UPCYCLING PLASTIC NOW
The UN wants individual countries to sign up to significantly
reduce plastic production, including a phasing out of
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