Page 32 - Port Douglas Magazine 33

plastics

pirate

Protecting the Great Barrier Reef 600,000+
from plastic pollution tonnes 8

‘RECYCLED’ IN AUSTRALIA
WORDS by Jamie Jansen
PER ANNUM million
As eight million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans annually, “The banana industry too sends an incredible amount to landfill.

plastic pollution is no longer a problem we can ignore. Port This is because there is a very small market for recycled plastic TONNES OF PLASTIC ENTER
Douglas local and founder of Plastics Pirate, Connor Clarke, in Australia. Most of the plastic waste in Australia is tied up in
is working hard on a solution to undo our damage. government legislation and finds its way to landfill. OCEAN ANNUALLY

“This is the decade we have to make a change.” “For example, there is not even a shredder between here and
Since January 2018, when China stopped taking most of the world’s Brisbane. Ironic really considering we have the Great Barrier Reef
‘recycling’ waste, countries around the world, including Australia, and the Daintree on our doorstep and we’re the custodians of it.
have struggled to find alternatives for their recycling, leaving millions “That’s why the Plastics Pirate project is so important; we need to

of tonnes of plastic to either be stockpiled, sent to landfill or dumped take care of the reef and to protect it from plastic pollution. For the
in our ocean. pilot we will also be using plastics collected from the Great Barrier
While sailing his boat on the Coral Sea and the Great Barrier Reef, Reef.”
Port Douglas resident Connor Clarke was shocked to see the amount 1
of plastic pollution with his own eyes and how it was impacting the Closed-loop process
ocean. “I realised we have no idea of the damage we’re causing and Connor explained that the essence of the project was proving they
the impact that we make in the long term,” said Connor. could make industry specific circular economies. garbage truck

When 2020 came around, he decided it was time to start doing “The plants will be able to be manufactured anywhere in the world

something. That’s when he learned about plastic pyrolysis, a so that they can be affordable to everyone. Communities and 165 OF PLASTIC WASTE DUMPED IN
technique that turns non recyclable plastic into oil. “In particular, businesses will then be able to process their own plastic,” he said.
usable fuels like diesel, unleaded and naphtha, which are building “By establishing industry-specific circular economies, Plastics Pirate OCEAN EVERY MINUTE

blocks for plastic production,” he explains.
can close the loop on removing plastic from the waste stream with million

“It achieves this by heating shredded plastic to five hundred degrees the flexibility to produce a fuel source that best suits each industry
in an oxygen free, sealed environment. This vaporises the plastic, or community.”
turning it into a gas which is then cooled in stages to produce fuel.” TONNES OF PLASTIC IN
Today Connor and the team from Plastics Pirate are hoping to make Mission OUR OCEANS
a real change to the plastic pollution problem with this technology. “Our mission is to prove and use the value of plastic waste to
empower communities and individuals. Proving profitable solutions

Mobile pyrolysis plants to the industry will give people hope in a plastic pandemic.”
Connor believes Plastics Pirate has the technology and the team to Connor and his team have been receiving lots of positive local
address this worldwide problem by giving much of the plastic waste feedback. “I can see that the awareness is increasing and everyone

a greater value that benefits the environment and our communities. is very supportive,” he said. 79%
“This is possible by using something that’s called a ‘mobile plastic “The plastic waste problem is a dire situation which I fully believe we
pyrolysis plant’. These plants are able to convert plastic into usable have the solution for. If I didn’t have a solution, I would feel really
fuels without the need for further processing.” despondent. OF PLASTIC WASTE IS SENT
“The plants, developed and manufactured by our South-African Joint “This is the decade that we simply have to make a change, otherwise TO LANDFILL OR THE OCEAN
Venture partners ScarabTech, are the only mobile plastic pyrolysis I don’t think there is a viable existence for us in the future.
plants in the world able to produce usable fuels straight from the “Plastic is an incredible material and there is nothing to date that
machine onsite,” he said. substitutes it. For its purpose it’s fantastic. Now, we just need to

“The plants can process up to 800kg of non-recyclable plastic waste manage it properly and find ways in which we can reuse it.
per day which produces up to 600 litres of usable fuels. “This is the last decade to undo our damage. To change the way we
“The process is environment friendly, cost efficient and almost no all do things,” he said.

emissions come out of the plant itself.” 2 billion
Pilot
Plastics Pirate is working with key stakeholders in local government “Our mission is to PEOPLE HAVE NO WASTE
and will be conducting a six month pilot phase with local partners To learn more about this DISPOSAL MEANS
including the Cook Shire Council, Containers For Change and the project, connect with Connor prove and use the value
banana industry in Far North Queensland. and his team and to donate
Containers for Change is Queensland’s container refund scheme to Plastics Pirate visit of plastic waste to
under which people can return their empty eligible drink containers plasticspirate.org
for a 10 cents refund at approved container refund points. empower communities
“Traditionally people can only return certain types of containers, the
pilot will make it possible to manage all types of plastic waste and we and individuals”

make sure it doesn’t go to landfill,” Connor explains.
32 tourismportdouglas.com.au