A life-cycle assessment study by German energy and environmental research institute ifeu (Heidelberg; www.ifeu.de) says the range of “Bornewables” polypropylene from resin maker Borealis (Vienna / Austria; www.borealisgroup.com) produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions compared to polyolefins made from fossil-based feedstock.

Borealis’ “ISCC Plus” certified Bornewables are made of renewably sourced feedstocks from waste and residue streams from vegetable oil production, oil waste and residues (see Plasteurope.com of 29.09.2020). The study analysed the life-cycle emissions of PP produced at Borealis’ Belgian sites in Kallo and Beringen using Neste’s (Espoo / Finland; www.neste.com) renewable feedstock and said that from cradle-to-gate, GHG emissions are significantly reduced – by 2.7kg of CO₂ equivalent per kg of PP – with carbon-footprint reduction amounting to 52% compared to PP produced from fossil-based feedstock.

The resin maker also recently announced the expansion of its “Stop Ocean Plastics” (Stop) project, launched in 2017 with environmental group Systemiq (London / UK; www.systemiq.earth – see Plasteurope.com of 19.10.2017). Stop is an initiative that designs, implements, and scales circular economy solutions to prevent plastics pollution in Southeast Asia.

With the expansion, the project is expected to extend circular waste management to 2m people in Indonesia, with the goal of managing 25,000 t/y of plastics waste by 2025. The project had reportedly brought waste management services to 130,000 people by the end of 2020 (see Plasteurope.com of 13.04.2021). By the end of April 2021, the project reached nearly 200,000 people across three Indonesian cities with new waste management services, collected 11,000 t of waste, and prevented 10,000 t of waste from leaking into the environment, according to Borealis.

The initiative also claims to have created 210 jobs in the waste management industry in these cities. The project’s strategic partners include the Norwegian government, Nova Chemicals, Nestlé, Borouge, the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), Siegwerk, Veolia, Sustainable Waste Indonesia, Schwarz Group, and HP.

When asked about the “significant financial commitment” involved in the project’s expansion, a company spokesperson declined to provide the amount to Plasteurope.com. “We will have more information on this by autumn,” the spokesperson said.