Summit Systems have recently sponsored the collection of 20,000 kilograms of ocean plastic under Ocean Integrity “The Blue Ocean Program “STANDARD”, which is more than double the plastic footprint of the company.
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A key area of importance to Summit Systems is recycling and sustainability, and while they provide machinery for their customers to recycle and reuse plastics materials within their processes, supporting the Plastics Packaging Tax to ensure they are meeting or exceeding the 30% recycled content threshold within their packaging (which was introduced April 2022), they are also supporting a pioneering ocean clean-up programme based out of Indonesia, Ocean Integrity.
Strong advocates for the plastics industry, Summit Systems’ Recycling and Material Specialist, Dan Jordan, reached out to Kieran Kelly, CEO of Ocean Integrity in September 2021; and the companies have since been working together to promote the message of a legitimate ocean clean-up movement.
In April 2022, a donation of £25,000 from Summit Systems helped fund a 120m long by 20m deep static fixed line net; designed by Kelly and manufactured in Denmark. The Microplastic Elimination Device, MPED, was created to facilitate the collection of microplastics which cannot be collected through standard surface skimming nets. The MPED is fixed in place, not requiring large tugboats burning 30,000 litres a day of fuel to collect the plastic, keeping its carbon footprint to basically non-existent.
Summit Systems most recent donation of £10,000 saw the collection of 20,000 kilograms of ocean plastics being cleared in the Tangerang region of Indonesia, which would not have been possible without the MPED. The collection was overseen by ocean plastic migration management service, Oceans Stop! and carried out by 20 indigenous fishermen, all who were paid higher than a standard living wage to do so. Unfortunately, due to pollution levels being so high, there are barely any fish left for the fishermen to earn a living.
A collection of this size can save the global economy up to $660,000.
But it does not just stop once the ocean plastics have been collected. Ocean Integrity are repurposing the collected material and blending it into aggregate to create building bricks, used to build houses for local communities through the Indonesian government. The ocean plastics collected are predominately low grade, challenging plastics which cannot be recycled into everyday items due to the contamination and mixed polymer types, making it unsuitable for traditional moulding of products. The bricks boast huge carbon savings as opposed to traditional concrete and the process utilises the waste materials, provides jobs into the local area and removes copious amounts of plastics from the rivers and oceans.
Mike Jordan, Managing Director of Summit Systems, “It is really rewarding to work with someone so genuinely passionate, that is so determined to run a sustainable solution to plastic ocean pollution. The world needs more Kieran Kelly’s. We are very happy to be working with him. We strongly encourage other companies to get involved with Ocean Integrity so that we can start making a difference for the future of our planet and for our grandchildren.”
Between Ocean Integrity and their Blue Ocean programme, they have the perfect ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) solution for companies looking to meet their ESG and carbon targets.
For more information on Ocean Integrity and the ocean plastics collection visit www.oceansintegrity.com.
Summit Systems, www.summitsystems.co.uk
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