Replas Words Heather Armstrong. Pictures by Angela Hayward.
Look around. Plastic is part of our lives – a big part. It is easy to see why: it’s convenient, cheap and durable – too durable as it turns out. Plastic has now become a huge global environmental problem. Replas is one company working towards a solution. In 1991, Australian Recycling Technologies (ART) and Repeat
Plastics shared a passion for the environment. Dismayed by the amount of household plastic waste going needlessly to
landfill, both companies developed the technology to recycle this waste material.
Repeat Plastics specialised in the collection of post-industrial
can be recycled to make new plastic products. Recycled
plastic is resistant to termites, microorganisms and moisture, and will never split, rot, crack or need painting.
Through the REDcycle program, Replas is proud to partner
with companies, such as Coles and Woolworths, who have taken responsibility for the plastic waste they generate.
waste while ART concentrated on material collected from
The soft plastic material collected through the program can
prestigious award for environmental excellence in Australia.
outdoor use in the community.
the kerbside, receiving the Banksia Award in 1992 – the most These two companies joined forces and their shared vision resulted in the formation of Replas Australia.
Kelvin Agg, Victoria’s territory manager, sheds some light on this innovative company. What does Replas do? Replas’s unique ability to mix different plastic polymers together has resulted in a range of over 200 colourful
products. Recycled plastic products are low maintenance
and long lasting and are an ethical alternative to the use of
traditional materials. They are made from plastic waste that previously would have ended up in landfill.
The process is environmentally efficient, only using
approximately 25 per cent of the power that it takes to make
virgin plastic. Replas does not wash the plastic, so there is no water used, and it only adds colour and UV stabiliser to its products at a rate of roughly 2 per cent.
100
Plastic products that are at the end of their life or damaged
be recycled by Replas and turned into products designed for Who buys the products? Mainly councils and local government agencies. The
procurement of such products can benefit both their waste management and asset management departments.
Councils can influence how communities can incorporate
recycled products into their projects and local infrastructure, but a common challenge is to break down the traditional
barriers and look to incorporate more progressive materials and products into their asset procurement.
If the demand for recycled plastic products were to cease,
the “recycling process” would not be closed off; however, the model would remain lineal, which is a highly unsustainable practice. Without the procurement of recycled products
closing the loop within a circular economy, all the plastic
waste diverted from local landfill would become someone else’s problem.
