In this episode of Plastics Revolution, I'm chatting with Lesley Van Staveren from ReGen Plastics in Cairns, Australia.  For decades, Lesley and her husband Colin have been making, as well as reselling construction supplies.  Some of the products they resold were made from recycled plastic.

They found it confronting when they realised that all the plastic recyclables collected in their area were actually shipped 2000 kilometres away to Brisbane, and then returned to their city as finished products. They asked, "Why couldn't this be done in Cairns."

And so here began their journey to create industrial, load-bearing construction products from recycled plastic collected locally.   

I hope you enjoy this episode of Plastics Revolution with Lesley Van Staveren of ReGen Plastics.

You can read the full transcript of this episode on Tammy's blog.

 

UPDATE: We have an update to Lesley's story since we taped it. ReGen Plastics has just received the strength testing results performed by James Cook University for their products.  As a result, they now have the certifications for their twin-wall panel which can allow it to be used for structural applications like joists, barriers, flooring and even retaining walls. This is a huge step for creating greater demand for what may otherwise be considered plastic waste.

 

Companies, Organisations and Products Mentioned in this Podcast:

ReGen Plastics FNQ Plastics Telford Smith Engineering Cairns Committee for Waste Reduction The Social Effect

Credits

Hosted by Tammy Ven Dange Produced by Jonny Puskas Theme Music by Joseph McDade All Rights Reserved 2019

 

You can read the full transcript of this episode on Tammy's blog.