Greencap Eco-News  |  Issue 8 |  June 2022

In case you've missed it - recent good eco-news!

As part of Greencap's commitment to all things sustainable, we are pleased to send this regular communication where Greencap's own Eco-Sustainability Committee team members provide interesting facts, quick eco-tips, and recent environmental news.

This issue includes a number of really positive recent eco-sustainability news stories you may have missed this year amongst the general doom and gloom of climate and sustainability reporting. Read on for some select (& surprising) scientific discoveries and recent Wesfarmers Sustainability highlights from the rest of the group.

Did you know?
Dried banana peels zapped with a powerful lamp can be instantly turned into renewable energy?

One powerful flashlight shot can trigger biomass conversion in just a few milliseconds.

In the EU, ‘renewable’ hydrogen can be made from biomass provided certain sustainability criteria are met (one major concern being it can actually release more CO2, for example where forests are logged, to fuel power stations). There are a couple of existing routes to chemically convert biomass to hydrogen using:

• Gasification (blasts the organic material to temperatures of 1000°C, converting it into syngas)
• Pyrolysis (decomposes the biomass at lower temperatures of 400 to 800°C, in containers without oxygen.

They are both however not without limitations as the gasification process leaves behind a solid residue of carbon, known as ‘biochar’ or charcoal and psyrolsis requires very specific reactors that can handle high temperatures and pressures.

As this new method of photo-thermal (light and heat-based) conversion using a xenon lamp captures all products, it is a simpler, economical and also climate-safe option moving forward.

Learn more - Scientists find a way to instantly extract biofuel from banana peel

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“Previously scientists have looked at enhancing the degradability of PLA to water -- hydrolysis -- but this is the first time anyone has looked at using light."

PLA (Polylactic acid), created using lactic acid from the fermentation of sugars, is now widely used as a renewable, sustainable alternative to plastics derived from crude oil products. It is used in everything from disposable cups and teabags to 3D printing and packaging and is often labelled as biodegradable, however it has limited degradability in natural environments.

Most PLA plastics are made up of long polymer chains which can be difficult for water and enzymes to break down and only degrades under industrial composting conditions of high temperatures and humidity (which is not achievable in domestic compost heaps).
However the University of Bath team found that by incorporating different amounts of sugar molecules into the polymer they could change the degradability of the plastic.
They found that incorporating as little as three per cent sugar polymer units into PLA led to 40% degradation within six hours of exposure to UV light.

Most promisingly, the technology is compatible with existing plastic manufacturing processes, meaning it could potentially be quickly tested and adopted by the plastics industry.

Learn more - Scientists make plastic more degradable under UV light (Science Daily)

World's largest plant discovered off WA Coast

This rare process happens in certain environmental conditions and occurs more often among some plants, fungi and bacteria. The study suggested that reproducing via cloning helped the seagrass meadow adapt to inhabit the more extreme than usual conditions for seagrass - saltier water, higher levels of light and wider temperature fluctuations. 

Senior research fellow at the School of Biological Sciences and Oceans Institute at The University of Western Australia and seagrass study author Lucy Sinclair highlighted:

"We often get asked how many different plants are growing in a seagrass meadow. Here we used genetic tools to answer it. The answer definitely surprised us - just ONE! That's it, just one plant has expanded over 180 km in Shark Bay, making it the largest known plant on Earth."

Sinclair also noted "individual seagrass clones may persist almost indefinitely if left undisturbed, as they rely on vegetative, horizontal rhizome expansion, rather than sexual reproduction."

While this particular Shark Bay Posidonia is very old (approximately 4,500 years old), its age isn't record-breaking. A 15 kilometre Posidonia oceanica plant discovered in the western Mediterranean may be greater than 100,000 years old!

Learn more - World's largest plant discovered in Australia (CNN)
 

The Fuso eCanters will deliver home and lifestyle products to local stores in Melbourne’s southwest and will be powered by 100 per cent renewable energy with a reduction of at least 60 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year, compared to the same size diesel powered truck. The electric vehicles form part of Bunnings’ sustainability strategy with a pledge to reach net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030. 

Learn more - Bunnings Expands Fleet with All Electric Trucks
 

In contrast to the traditional ‘linear economy’ model, a circular economy is about designing out waste and pollution along every step of the product life cycle and keeping materials in circulation for as long as possible. This requires collaboration across the supply chain, government and industry to achieve system change. 

While the transition to a circular fashion system is not something that can be achieved overnight, Kmart Group is making progress in the way it reuses waste across various stages of the product life cycle including:

• Sourcing (reducing reliance on raw material or 'virgin fibres')
• Incorporating more recycled materials
• Reusing waste generated in the production of garments through its participation in the Circular Fashion Partnership, a cross-sector project led by the Global Fashion Agenda, with Reverse Resources, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association and P4G

Kmart have also reduced their emissions intensity by 35% since 2015, assisted by this focus on recycled and organic fibres. Many of the supply factories in China are also being transitioned out of coal fuel to natural gas or biomass. 

The group is tracking to have 65% of all polyester content from recycled material by 2025!

Learn more - Kmart Group transition towards a circular fashion system

The CSBP Coastal Connection Challenge saw participants (largely local school students from the Kwinana and Rockingham areas - home to some of the best beaches in the Perth metro area) working in groups with subject matter experts and mentors, including CSBP and Perth University representatives, to turn their ideas into practical projects that could be implemented in the community. 

Learn more - CSBP partnership cares for coastal environment

​Further reading:

Indian Ocean marine parks off Christmas Island and Cocos Islands get the go-ahead (ABC News)

Medics perform 'net-zero' cancer operation in Solihull (BBC News)

World's largest plant discovered in Australia (CNN)

New Zealand woman creates her own electric car for $24,000 (The Guardian)

Panama brings in new law granting nature the ‘right to exist' (Euronews)

Meet the four-legged hero keeping Santigo's parks clean (sbs.com.au)

Vertical forest apartment has an astonishing 404 trees (inhabitat.com)

France lottery winner spends millions on saving the planet - CNN

Can Seeds Planted by Drones Spawn New Forests? (nytimes.com)

9 youth climate activists from around the world share their book and podcast picks (ted.com)