Story of Plastic – From Waste to Product

How does a sorted plastic package become a raw material for a new product?

Plastic plays a key role in our society. As a material, it is cheap, lightweight, durable, versatile and has good protective properties. However, plastics must be used in a more sustainable manner. When unrecycled plastic is burned to energy, we lose the valuable raw material. Plastic recycling reduces climate emissions and saves natural resources.  

The separate collection of plastic packaging for consumers started a few years ago, but other plastics, such as so-called rigid plastics, are still poorly recycled. Both Finland and the EU aim to increase the recycling rate of plastic packaging to 55% by 2030. In order to achieve this goal, information and awareness-raising, behavioural change as well as new methods for recycling and utilising plastic waste, products and technologies are needed. All plastic waste is not yet sorted or appropriately utilised as materials. In Espoo, we strive to increase the recycling rate and ensure that an ever-increasing percentage of plastic goes into circulation.

The aim of the Story of Plastic – From Waste to Product project was to illustrate how the increasing stream of plastic waste can be used to manufacture sustainable low-carbon products. We wanted to strengthen the separate collection of plastics and increase the knowledge and skills of citizens, especially children and young people, on the circular economy. At the same time, we developed solutions for using mixed plastics without additional processing.  

How the story of plastic progressed

The separate collection of plastic and other fractions is currently being expanded in Espoo, especially in schools. Schools and early childhood education are excellent focuses for the promotion of recycling, since children and young people will convey the lessons they learn to those close to them. During the project, Espoo expanded the separate collection of plastic to new partner schools from which mixed plastic waste was transported to the plastic laboratory of the LAB University of Applied Sciences for study and processing. LAB’s designer students then used the recycled plastic to design products suitable for the urban environment, which were manufactured in the plastic laboratory by means of 3D printing. The new products made from the plastic recycled by the schools were sent back to the schools to demonstrate how appropriately sorted plastic becomes a new product.

Explore the story of plastic

Mia Johansson

Project Manager+358 40 5530439

Ossi Martikka

Project Manager+358 50 5162757

LAB University of Applied Sciences

The Story of Plastic – From Waste to Product is a joint project by the City of Espoo and the LAB University of Applied Sciences, and it has received funding from the Ministry of the Environment’s support programme for the Plastics Roadmap trial and pilot projects. The project started at the beginning of 2021 and continued until the end of September 2022.