The Agar Bottle
“Did you know that about 300 million tons is of plastic is produced globally per year? Also, did you know that only 10% of that is getting recycled?” as stated by The New York Times. With people throwing their plastic on the ground, around 8 million metric tons of that plastic waste enters the oceans from land each year! Well, not anymore because the seaweed bottle is a product that is being invented to help stop this terrible problem. The seaweed bottle is a bottle made of agar. Agar is a gelatinous substance obtained from marine algae, which has long been used in Japan as a key ingredient in traditional sweets. Do you also love the animals in the sea? Then why not help protect them?
How does a seaweed bottle help with Global Warming? You can find seaweed everywhere; in the sea, in a sushi restaurant, and now also as a bottle! And because everyone knows that plastic is horrible the environment, people started to think of inventions that could make a change on global warming. Like the seaweed bottle! "It is probably the most pragmatic project there was," The team said after the awards ceremony. "It was the one that had the most genuine ambitions, and the most genuine desire to solve a problem – and that is the overconsumption and the over disposal of non-biodegradable synthetic materials”. Seaweed is a natural material that comes from the sea. And the seaweed bottle doesn’t have any plastic in it! So, no greenhouse gasses that go into the air by making the bottle. People forget that throwing a bottle on the ground or in the sea has a bad impact on the environment. But that is not a worry anymore if you use the seaweed bottle. When drinking the liquid inside the bottle, the size of the bottle decreases. So, after drinking all the liquid, it only has a size of your pinkie. Then, you can throw the pinkie sized bottle on the ground; it only takes a few months to disappear. You can also throw it into the sea or ocean, where it comes from. And there you go, nothing has happened to the environment.
If more people or places used it, how could it reduce the impact of Global Warming? A seaweed bottle needs a whole production before it is what is should be. The agar plastic process starts with agar powder being dissolved in simmering water and then poured into a meld, once the agar sets into a kind of jelly, the meld is frozen for approximately two days. This freezing process forms the agar into a structure that can provide cushioning for a packaged item. After two days, the frozen agar solution is thawed and completely air-dried. Many products are packed with plastic. Plastic is one of the most intermittently recycled forms of waste. Plastic must be made, and that releases greenhouse gasses into the air. And it must get burned after using it. And that also releases a big amount of greenhouse gasses. And now people know how to use seaweed to make bottles, they can also use it to pack other products. Such as meat, chicken, even candy. Seaweed doesn’t have to get burned because it disappears by itself. The more people who use the seaweed bottle the better it is for the environment!
Where else can the seaweed bottle be applied to help with Global Warming? Agar can not only be used as a bottle. It can be used as packaging, kitchen supplies, or decoration. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a seaweed phone case? Or even wall paper made from seaweed. Can you imagine walking to the cash desk in the Woolworth, and the woman behind the desk asks if you want a shopping bag, and you get a shopping bag made from seaweed!? People are already thinking and experimenting to make lamp caps made from seaweed! AMAM, the team that invented the seaweed bottle is already trying to make plates, forks, and other kitchen supplies made from seaweed. You can find seaweed everywhere, so it can be made everywhere around the world. As the world develops the people develop. People are thinking of so much innovations to decrease global warming. In conclusion, the agar bottle is a perfectly, safe, and environmentally free innovation, that is helping to fight climate change. Seaweed comes from the sea, so, it is 100% green. Seaweed can be used for packaging or decoration also. And the bottle decreases the amount of plastic made. Using plastic is dangerous to our environment. Plastic pollutes soil and water, and kills thousands of animals living under the ocean. If we all stopped using plastic, research shows that humans will be much healthier, according to the “Conserve Energy Future”. •
• • • • • • • •
McKie, Robin. "Plastic Now Pollutes Every Corner of Earth." The Observer. Guardian News and Media, 23 Jan. 2016. Web. May 2017. <https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jan/24/plastic-newepoch-human-damage>. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jan/24/plastic-new-epochhuman-damage Laylin, Tafline. "Nir Meiri’s Marine Light Is a Sustainable Seaweed Lamp You Can Eat." Green Prophet. Green Prophet, 17 May 2013. Web. 04 May 2017. <https://www.greenprophet.com/2013/05/nir-meiri-marine-light-edible-eat/>. Morby, Alice. "Eco-friendly Seaweed Packaging Wins Lexus Design Award." Dezeen. Dezeen, 04 Nov. 2016. Web. Apr.-May 2017. <https://www.dezeen.com/2016/04/19/eco-friendly-packaging-concept-agarplasticity-seaweed-wins-lexus-design-award-milan-deisgn-week/>. Cooke, Lacy. "Biodegradable Algae Water Bottles Provide a Green Alternative to Plastic." Inhabitat Green Design Innovation Architecture Green Building. INhabitat, 28 Aug. 2016. Web. Apr.-May 2017. <http://inhabitat.com/biodegradable-algae-water-bottles-that-provide-a-green-alternative-to-plastic/>. Creeklife. "Six Reasons Why Plastic Is Bad for the Environment." Creeklife. Creeklife, 2015. Web. Apr.May 2017. <https://creeklife.com/blog/six-reasons-why-plastic-is-bad-for-the-environment>. Demetriou, Danielle. "AMAM and the Future of Packaging Text By Danielle Demetriou." AMAM and the Future of Packaging | Lexus International. Craftmanship, 2016. Web. Apr.-May 2017. <https://www.lexus-int.com/craftsmanship/amam-and-the-future-of-packaging>. "5 of the Coolest Environmental Inventions… Because It’s Earth Day." The Intertia. Ed. Alexander Haro. The Intertia, 22 Apr. 2016. Web. Apr.-May 2017. <http://www.theinertia.com/surf/5-of-the-coolestenvironmental-inventions-because-its-earth-day/>. Pangburn, DJ. "New Seaweed-Based Material Could Replace Plastic Packaging." GOOD Magazine. GOOD, 09 Mar. 2016. Web. Apr.-May 2017. <https://www.good.is/articles/agar-plasticity-amam-arakimaetani-muraoka-packaging>.