Shell opens its 1st gas station using upcycled plastic waste
PLARIDEL, ( PNA)
Bulacan – Pilipinas Shell has partnered with Green Antz Builders to build a retail station in this town using eco-bricks made of upcycled plastic waste, the first not only in the country but for the Shell global group.
Randy del Valle, Pilipinas general manager and vice president for Shell Mobility Philippines, said on Saturday this past year has been all about accelerating their transformation to do better in their financial, social, and environmental dimensions.
“At Shell, we believe that this milestone station will not only help us reduce our carbon footprint and meet our ambition to reduce, reuse, recycle waste but also set a precedent for smarter and costefficient station design,” del Valle said during the opening of the Shell gas station here.
He said the move is the first step in Shell’s journey to support a circular economy approach, based on the concept that things are designed to last longer and to be reused, repurposed, or recycled.
The station was built using 26,512 ecobrick from 1,200 kilos of upcycled plastic waste equivalent to 80,000 lubricant bottles.
Sourced from Green Antz’s Plaridel eco-brick hub, the materials came from material recovery facilities (MRF) of the local government units of Malolos, Pulilan, Baliuag, and San Ildefonso with the help of Plaridel’s chief eco-brick proponent Jocell Vistan.
The eco-bricks help initiate a circular economy that not only reduces the plastics reaching landfills but also generates commercial value out of what was previously considered waste for businesses in Plaridel.
“We call it urban mining. Instead of getting all the resources from the environment, we just look around and source for plastic waste,” said Green Antz CEO Rommel Benig, adding that “in fact, we’re not calling it waste, we’re calling it a r esou r ce.”
While eco-brick is more expensive per unit compared to traditional brick, buildings that use this alternative reduce the overall cost of construction and operation, Benig said.
Eco-brick is more compact than conventional hollow blocks and up to five times stronger, he said.
The eco-brick design also allows for greater insulation that drastically reduces energy consumption, resulting in lower electricity costs and environmental impact.
Aside from the eco-brick project, Shell is also working with Green Antz through its social development arm, Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. (PSFI) to set up an ecobrick manufacturing hub in Cagayan De Oro to help manage waste in Macajalar Bay while providing members of the Macabalan Wharf Porters Association an additional source of livelihood.
“We're seeing a very good trend. A lot of awareness is being created and more companies and organizations are getting involved in recycling. This was not the case five, six, or seven years ago. So, we are excited about the future, where everybody is more environmentally responsible,” Benig said.
“We cannot do it alone, neither the government nor the private sectors. But if we combine forces, we have a very good fighting chance to address the problem,” he added.
Shell is a leading member of the Alliance To End Plastic Waste, an alliance of global companies including chemicals and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods and waste-management firms, along with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
It has committed USD1.5 billion over the next five years to end plastic waste in the environment. (PNA)