Plastic. Versatile, inexpensive and durable. It is in our
clothing, our homes, protects the food we buy and the products we consume. We
live in a society with a throw-away mentality, heavily dependent on these
primarily single use plastics in our everyday lives. As a result, ocean plastic
pollution is increasing at an alarming rate. Each year around 8 million tons of
plastic waste enters the ocean, the equivalent of one dump truck of trash
entering the ocean every second. In addition, it is estimated that by 2050
there will be more plastic by weight in the ocean, than fish. Perhaps the most eye-opening
impact that plastic pollution has is on marine life, around 630 species have
found to be affected, most of which die prematurely from becoming entangled in,
or ingesting plastic debris. If this fact alone isn’t alarming enough, the
negative effects this waste is causing is possibly more overwhelming. When
plastic is produced, it creates emissions through the burning of oil. Then,
when it is discarded in the ocean, over time as it breaks down it releases
methane into the atmosphere and thus contributing to global warming and climate
change.
It is easy, as an everyday consumer to disregard or ignore the
issue when it is out of sight, but the issue is becoming increasingly pressing and
as awareness increases, so too does action. One company taking action against
this waste is Bionic Yarn.
On Wednesday the 14th of November, Tim Coombs, co-founder of Bionic Yarns, travelled to Lim College to chat to our Sustainability and the Future of Fashion class about the origins of, and the purpose of Bionic. The company began in the early 2000’s when Tim and co-founder Tyson Taussant, who at the time were producing backpacks and tents, noticed brands using recycled fibers. Loving the idea, full of hope, and Tim admitted, with little knowledge, they jumped into the industry and so Bionic was born. Far from its humble origins, Tim described Bionic as a mission driven, raw materials engineering company, who create technologically advanced yarns using recovered plastic from the ocean and coastal areas. It is through their partnership with not-for-profit organization, the Water Keeper Alliance, known as the Ocean Plastic Recovery Initiative, that allows Bionic to produce these materials. Bionic purchases bales of recovered plastic, that is either collected from the ocean or within a 1km radius of the ocean, from Water Keeper. From there it is transported to their manufacturing factories where the plastic is washed, melted, cut and extruded into filaments before being spun into one of their 3 patented yarns, each with its own unique performance qualities and functions. Known as HLX, DPX and FLX, these yarns are made of a combination of recycled plastic filaments and other natural or synthetic materials like cotton or bamboo. With varied uses from fashion garments, to shoes and backpacks, Bionic have created yarns to replace virgin fibres in most fashion applications. Tim explained that while they strive to avoid using virgin plastics in their yarns, in the case of yarns that require special treatment such as anti-microbial or flame resistant properties, they must use synthetic fibers.
On Wednesday the 14th of November, Tim Coombs, co-founder of Bionic Yarns, travelled to Lim College to chat to our Sustainability and the Future of Fashion class about the origins of, and the purpose of Bionic. The company began in the early 2000’s when Tim and co-founder Tyson Taussant, who at the time were producing backpacks and tents, noticed brands using recycled fibers. Loving the idea, full of hope, and Tim admitted, with little knowledge, they jumped into the industry and so Bionic was born. Far from its humble origins, Tim described Bionic as a mission driven, raw materials engineering company, who create technologically advanced yarns using recovered plastic from the ocean and coastal areas. It is through their partnership with not-for-profit organization, the Water Keeper Alliance, known as the Ocean Plastic Recovery Initiative, that allows Bionic to produce these materials. Bionic purchases bales of recovered plastic, that is either collected from the ocean or within a 1km radius of the ocean, from Water Keeper. From there it is transported to their manufacturing factories where the plastic is washed, melted, cut and extruded into filaments before being spun into one of their 3 patented yarns, each with its own unique performance qualities and functions. Known as HLX, DPX and FLX, these yarns are made of a combination of recycled plastic filaments and other natural or synthetic materials like cotton or bamboo. With varied uses from fashion garments, to shoes and backpacks, Bionic have created yarns to replace virgin fibres in most fashion applications. Tim explained that while they strive to avoid using virgin plastics in their yarns, in the case of yarns that require special treatment such as anti-microbial or flame resistant properties, they must use synthetic fibers.
Bionics relationship with Water Keeper is a successful demand-side
water conservation initiative, defined by Tim as symbiotic. Sharing a mutual
goal of clean water and strong communities, together Bionic and Water Keeper
implement and operate plastic recovery infrastructure, invest in local education
and conduct cleanups in rural and developing areas, among other things. The
most inspiring part about their relationship is that any profit that Water
Keeper makes is then utilized for other sustainability initiatives.
While nay-sayers often argue that using recycled plastic products
is not addressing the root issue, Tim stands firm that this idea is naïve,
having said that it is only through companies like Bionic, standing up and
being a force for change, that our industries will change. It is this mentality
that sets Bionic apart from names like Gore-Tex and Lycra. Tim puts it simply: they
are human first and technology second, so what draws clients like Timberland
and G-Star to the brand is their mission first, second to the technical ability
of their products.
Through their work, Bionic is helping to alleviate immediate
threats on wildlife and our environment, and in turn changing the conversation
in our imperfect industry. Whether you believe in their product or not,
Bionic should be commended for the excellent work they are doing
in ensuring generational equity – that our children will experience the
same beautiful ocean as us.
Photo credit: Change.org, Bionic website
References:
A NEW LINK BETWEEN
PLASTIC AND CLIMATE CHANGE. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.parley.tv/updates/2018/7/23/a-new-link-between-plastic-and-climate-change
Baulch, S. (2014). The
shocking impacts of plastic pollution in our oceans. Retrieved from
https://eia-international.org/the-shocking-impacts-of-plastic-pollution-in-our-oceans/
Le Guem, C. (2018).
When the mermaids cry: the great plastic tide. Retrieved from
http://plastic-pollution.org/
Olsen, R. (2018). A running list of action on plastic pollution. Retrieved from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/07/ocean-plastic-pollution-solutions/ http://plastic-pollution.org/
ORIGINS. Retrieved from http://bionic.is/origins.html
Robertson, M. (2017). Sustainability Principles and
Practice. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge.
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