Sunday, December 6, 2009

Reusing those dirty diapers

Knowaste Turns Dirty Diapers into Green ($)
Once the soiled products are collected and transported to the Knowaste facility, the products are sent to a shredder that breaks them apart. They are washed, sanitized, deactivated and mechanically separated into plastic components or organic residue. A special chemical treatment is used to deactivate the polymers.

Plastic materials are removed, filtered, cleaned and compressed into small pellets. The plastic is then recycled into a variety of products including shoe insoles, vinyl siding, wallpaper, bicycle helmets and roofing tiles, to name a few.

Non-recyclable waste is converted into green energy, which will power the facility or will be sold to the national grid. The water used during the process is treated and reused again.

Besides diapers from nurseries, the new Birmingham plant will also accept adult hygiene waste from nursing homes and hospitals. The Birmingham facility is the first of five proposed plants in the UK.

Established in 1989, Knowaste recycles other absorbent hygiene products besides diapers – bed-liners, adult incontinence and feminine hygiene products. The company’s main recycling facility is located in Toronto, Canada.
Bring a few of those plants here to the US. Think not only about baby diapers but all those adult diapers as well. Walk through a food store and look at all the diapers and incontinence products. As our population is aging, this will be the issue facing us.

Just think, you can use that Depends today and wear a bike helmet made from that same Depend. You'll be protected on both ends.

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