
Precious Plastic Version 4 [video] - mmastrac
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thhHoPJ6Y14
======
Goonbaggins
I spent a solid chunk of the last year contributing to this project and would
be happy to answer any questions.

I commonly see Hacker News discussions on how plastic recycling is a waste of
time/energy. The EPA's models feel otherwise, estimating one ton of recycled
plastic saves 5,774 Kwh of energy, 16.3 barrels of oil, 98 million BTU's of
energy, and 30 cubic yards of landfill space. [0][1]

One of the principles that started this project was the idea that recycling
waste wood or metal is generally understood by your common DIYer, but is much
less true for waste plastic. The team definitely feels like reducing plastic
waste is the most important step, but we can also put the plastic around us to
additional use.

[0] [https://www.epa.gov/warm](https://www.epa.gov/warm)

[1] [https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-
recycling/frequently-...](https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-
recycling/frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-benefits-
recycling)

~~~
monkmartinez
Thank you!!! I appreciate the effort here and have followed Dave on Youtube
for long time.... but have spent very little time on the precious plastics
webpage. So if my questions are better answered there, please feel free to
point me in the right direction.

I am super interested in starting a small space... as in my garage. I have a
place on the side of my yard where I could store close to 10 pallet sized
"containers" where I could store various plastics.

Admittedly, I have been hesitant to purchase the required machinery to process
the plastic for selfish reasons. However, my wife and I have discussed the
need to do something completely altruistic to show our children and I think
this would satisfy more than a few "conditions" that would enable an
investment in said machinery.

That all said, how would you go about collecting plastic? I live in a suburban
city that has a recycling program. Should I ask businesses? Do I need to cold
call to get steady supplies? Picking stuff off the side of roads and whatnot
seems good for a while, but how would I make dent if I cannot secure a
reliable source?

~~~
Goonbaggins
Sounds like you might be excited to check out the new academy we launched.
There's a ton of new unlisted videos there too :) I'd take a look at the
Spaces chapter. [0]

Collection is fairly amorphous at the moment, but that means there's so many
options for you! We've laid out some ideas, but like past versions I
definitely expect to be blown away by how the community continuously improves
on the ideas and figure out what works best. This one will also vary the most
depending on your location in the world. [1]

[0]
[https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/spaces](https://community.preciousplastic.com/academy/spaces)

[1]
[https://collect.preciousplastic.com/](https://collect.preciousplastic.com/)

------
jaclaz
I don't want to seem negative, but the issue here (unless it is a "hobby") is
about the Laws (different even in countries belonging to EU) that regulate
waste treatment.

Only as an example (dated Strasbourg, 16.1.2018):

[https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A...](https://eur-
lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52018DC0032)

The actual technical guide has been published soon after:

[https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:...](https://eur-
lex.europa.eu/legal-
content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:OJ.C_.2018.124.01.0001.01.ENG&toc=OJ:C:2018:124:TOC)

But nothing yet AFAIK to implement (and simplify where needed) the national
Laws.

Basically, at least here in Italy, besides the (not-trivial amount of)
bureaucracy and paperwork needed to be authorized even for a tiny activity,
you need an analysis (from an authorised lab) to classify each and every batch
of plastic waste you process.

And in some cases (some types of PVC come to mind) the material could be
classified as "hazardous", and thus need to be disposed of by specialized
firms (at a cost).

------
spectramax
I love the aesthetics of this project. Does anyone think it’s more of an art
project than a serious engineering attempt?

~~~
Bootwizard
This is a serious attempt. I've been following these guys for years. Last year
they had a full makeshift staff of volunteer designers, engineers, web devs,
etc. to build out this project further. They performed a lot of materials and
manufacturing research to build these simple and affordable machines. Although
the machines they developed are around $10k for a full setup, compare that to
the multiple millions it costs to setup a true recycling center and you'll
understand how important this is.

A small community can (and are) band together to build or purchase these
machines to create community recycling centers, turning their trash into art
or other useful things like dishes and furniture.

I was obsessed with this project for the last few years. Happy and surprised
to see them on HN.

------
dang
Related from 2017:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15497732](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15497732)

