Replacing Plastic With Bamboo Leads Green Development
Today, with the rapid development of the global economy and culture, ecological and environmental issues have received attention from all walks of life. Environmental deterioration, resource scarcity and energy crisis have made people realize the importance of harmonious development of economy and environment, and the concept of "green economy" developed for the purpose of harmony between economy and environment has gradually gained popularity. At the same time, people began to pay more attention to ecological and environmental issues. After in-depth research, they found that the results were shocking.
White pollution, also known as plastic waste pollution, has become one of the most serious environmental pollution crises on earth. A total of 9.2 billion tons of plastic products were produced globally between 1950 and 2017, of which about 7 billion tons became plastic waste. The global recycling rate of these plastic wastes is less than 10%. At present, the plastic garbage in the ocean has reached 75 million to 199 million tons, accounting for 85% of the total weight of marine garbage. If effective intervention measures are not taken, it is estimated that by 2040, the amount of plastic waste entering water bodies will nearly triple to 23-37 million tons per year; it is estimated that by 2050, the total amount of plastic in the ocean will exceed that of fish. These plastic wastes not only cause serious harm to marine ecosystems and terrestrial ecosystems, but plastic particles and their additives can also seriously affect human health and long-term well-being.
To this end, the international community has successively issued policies to ban and limit plastics, and proposed a timetable for banning and limiting plastics. At present, more than 140 countries have made clear relevant policies. The Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the National Development and Reform Commission proposed in the "Opinions on Further Strengthening Plastic Pollution Control" issued in January 2020: "By 2022, the consumption of disposable plastic products will be significantly reduced, alternative products will be promoted, and plastic waste will be used as energy resources." The proportion of plastic utilization has increased significantly." The British government began to promote the new "Plastic Restriction Order" in early 2018, completely banning the sale of disposable plastic products such as plastic straws. In 2018, the European Commission proposed the "Plastic Restriction Order" plan, suggesting that straws made of more environmentally friendly and sustainable materials should replace plastic straws. Not only disposable plastic products, but the entire plastic product industry will face major changes, especially the recent surge in crude oil prices, and the low-carbon transformation of the plastic product industry is imminent. Low-carbon materials will become the only way to replace plastics.
At present, there are more than 1,600 species of bamboo plants known in the world, and the area of bamboo forests exceeds 35 million hectares, which are widely distributed in Asia, Africa and America. Bamboo has the characteristics of fast growth, short cultivation period, high strength, and good toughness. Many scientific research institutes and enterprises have begun to develop and produce bamboo products to replace plastic products, such as bamboo winding composite pipes, disposable bamboo tableware, and automotive interiors. It can not only replace plastic to meet people's needs, but also meet the requirements of green environmental protection. However, most of the research is still in its infancy, and the market share and recognition need to be improved. On the one hand, it gives more possibilities for "replacing plastic with bamboo", and at the same time, it also announced the huge test that will be faced on the road of "substituting bamboo for plastic" to lead green development.
The following introduces several mature "bamboo instead of plastic" products.
1. Disposable bamboo tableware
Bamboo straws, an emerging product, are expected to replace paper straws and polylactic acid (PLA) biodegradable straws and become a more ideal substitute for plastic straws because of their "anti-scald, durable and not easy to soften, simple process and low cost".
2. Bamboo packaging.
Bamboo packaging can be used as decorations, storage boxes, or vegetable baskets for daily shopping. It can be reused many times, and it can also be recycled to prepare bamboo charcoal.
3. Bamboo Fiber Reinforced Composite Materials for Automobiles
Bamboo fiber-reinforced thermoplastic and thermoset composite materials are also increasingly favored by automakers, and these materials can be applied to multiple parts such as bottoms, fronts, doors, dashboards, interiors, etc.
4. Bamboo electronic device shell products
The emergence of a large number of electronic products has facilitated people's lives, but their plastic casings inevitably bring about environmental pollution. Bamboo keyboards, bamboo mice, bamboo stereos, bamboo calculators, bamboo radios and other products that replace plastic products are novel in design, wear-resistant and stable in performance.
5. Bamboo building material
Bamboo can be made into bamboo deck and wall cladding. it is a good alternative to replace the WPC (made from plastic ) to reduce the use of plastic and protect the environment. REBO is one of the famous brands in the field of producing strand woven bamboo products, such as bamboo decking, bamboo flooring, bamboo wall cladding, bamboo horse stable plank, bamboo joist, bamboo panel, etc. Customized sizes are also welcome. Do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested in our products~
"Replacing plastic with bamboo" can reduce carbon emissions and help achieve double carbon goals.