We may someday live in a world where the plastic parts of our cars are sourced straight from the plastic that pollutes the ocean.
Sound far-fetched? It's already happening.
Automaker Kia and nonprofit The Ocean Cleanup have joined forces in a first-of-its-kind partnership to produce a car accessory using materials from the giant swirling island of plastic in the Pacific Ocean — AKA the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
🗣️ Do you think we use too much plastic in America?
🔘 Definitely 👍
🔘 Only some people 😅
🔘 Not really 👎
🔘 I'm not sure 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
As Yahoo Finance reported, the eco-friendly truck liner will be featured inside Kia's EV3 model. It will only be produced for a limited time, but by 2030, Kia aims to increase its use of recycled plastic in vehicles by 20% and continue to support The Ocean Cleanup.
The Netherlands-based nonprofit focuses on gathering and removing the plastic that drifts throughout the oceans, as well as capturing the pollution in riverways before it makes it to sea. Connecting its cleanup efforts to another business is a prime example of a circular economy in action, where waste is repurposed and given new life.
The partnership also shows Kia has taken a positive step toward minimizing its manufacturing pipeline's environmental impact, which has proven to be a smart business move for many industries.
Plus, removing a chunk of the growing plastic presence in the ocean is a win for marine life forms, which can be seriously impacted by plastic in their habitat. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch alone is now roughly 1.6 million square kilometers — twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France, according to The Ocean Cleanup.
"As the first genuine Kia accessory made using reclaimed ocean plastic, we are proud to see tangible progress made toward creating a circular resource system for ocean plastic," Charles Ryu, executive vice president at Kia, commented.
"We are so grateful to have a visionary and passionate partner in Kia", Boyan Slat, founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup, added. "We look forward to this launch being the first of many ways we turn ocean plastic from trash to treasure."
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
