Tesco claims it was the first retailer to ban plastic bags in favor of alternatives that are better for the environment. Now the U.K. hypermarket chain has even found a new way to recycle the bags.
Tesco has resurfaced the parking lot at its store in Dumfries, England, with the equivalent weight of 225,000 plastic shopping bags, saving upwards of 900 kilograms of plastic from going to landfills, and reducing the property’s carbon footprint by roughly a ton.
Adding the bags did not alter the asphalt manufacturing in terms of mixture time, temperatures or quality control, nor did the asphalt-laying contractor require any additional machinery, labor or time, according to Toby McCartney, a spokesman for MacRebur, which did the work. “We're able to take the waste plastics that are otherwise destined for landfill and add them into an asphalt mix to create a stronger, longer-lasting, pothole-free road surface.”
This is all part of Tesco's quest to reuse waste plastics, reduce carbon and promote sustainability, according to Kene Umeasiegbu, who heads the Tesco environmental initiatives. “We are working hard to reduce plastics and reuse and recycle wherever possible,” Umeasiegbu said. “Reusing waste plastics in this way is another example of how Tesco is innovating in the war against waste.”
By Brannon Boswell
Executive Editor, Commerce + Communities Today