Brazil must accelerate investments in the circular economy

Brazil has been slowly advancing in the adequacy of solid waste management.

According to the research Panorama of solid waste in Brazil 2023launched by the Brazilian Association of Waste and Environment (Open), about 43% of all the waste generated in the country had irregular disposal – the number corresponds to 33.3 million tons of urban solid waste ending in dumps, ditches, vacant lots and urban streams, threatening public health and the environment.

Among the possible ways to deal with this problem is the circular economy, an approach that seeks to maintain products, materials and resources in use, and for the longest possible time.

THE Setglobal leader in environmental solutions, has been standing out in this scenario by turning waste into new products and materials, helping companies to be more sustainable and decrease the use of raw materials, generating a positive impact on society and the environment.

“In nature, everything is circular, everything takes advantage. In Ambipar we seek to be part of this paradigm shift, leading a path to the more sustainable world and showing that it is possible to turn challenges into opportunities, ”says Rafael Tello, vice president of sustainability of the company.

The circular economy

Imagine a cycle where the end is a new beginning. This is the principle of circular economy – waste is reinvented and resources have prolonged lifetime. More than a trend, the model is a necessity for the planet.

The approach, which presents a new way of thinking, planning, producing and consuming, combines economic development with new production and management technologies to maximize process efficiency and minimize the use of non -renewable natural resources, generating less waste and environmental impacts.

To this end, it is necessary to incorporate processes and practices that allow the reuse, recovery and recycling of materials and products. It is an initiative that involves the entire production chain, from ecodesign to recycling operations, making it more integrated and collaborative, promoting the use of tailings from one activity as inputs to another.

Ambipar: Global leader in environmental solutions

From the purpose of preservation and regeneration, the need to reduce GHG emissions, and based on the National Solid Waste Policy (PNRS) 1, Ambipar has created a circular economy platform focused on post-consumer and post-industrial waste residues of the main recyclable materials. See what has been done, according to the different items:

• Glass
  Bottles: Through a sterilization process for reuse, the company reinserts the packaging that has already been used in the market (post-consumer), in order to allow up to 20 reuse and thus prevent disposal in landfills.
  Glass shards: Food packaging residues (such as the previous item bottles, after reuse), construction, auto industry or any other origin, both post-consumer and postindustrial, are collected, processed and reinserted in the glass industry as recycled raw material.
• Plastics
  HDP2: Usually used in packaging, the material is considered a more sustainable plastic compared to other types, as it is easily recyclable and can be transformed into new products after the end of its useful life. Ambipar has a transformation industry that offers high performance recycled resins to the market and polyethylene films for the most diverse applications.
  PET3: Ambipar’s plastic transformation industry acts on the recovery of PET packaging, turning them into preform for use in new items, especially in the area of ​​health product containers.

• Paper, Cardboard and Scraps

  After beneficiation, these materials are reinserted into the role industry to be transformed into new products such as cardboard boxes, toilet paper, notebooks and various other items.

• Metal scrap
  Ferrous and aluminum materials are reinserted in the steel industry as a raw material in steel production, reducing the demand for natural resources extraction and increasing energy efficiency throughout the chain, which contributes to the reduction of GHG emissions.
• Electronic materials
  Ambipar processes small and medium -sized electronic materials with new technologies implemented. In the discharge phase, equipment such as stove, washing machine, microwave and smartphones are separated into types of raw materials such as plastic, iron, aluminum, copper, brass, electronic plates and stainless steel, and thus are reinserted in the market for the manufacture of new products.

Market solutions

Ambipar’s circular economy platform also offers:

• Post-consumer packaging collection machines: Solutions for the collection of post-consumer packaging, those used in our daily lives, collecting machines can promote reverse logistics using an innovative loyalty and reward marketing system (financial or gift), in order to engage and awareness the population about recycling.
• Development of recycling cooperatives : Local and regional development solutions from the recycling chain, with PNRS implementation in municipalities and acting with cooperatives, improving governance, traceability, management and compliance processes, production organization for efficiency and scale gain and positioning Recycling professionals as impact social entrepreneurs. The results of this work raise recycling rates throughout Brazil. If the example of ambipar, society, the public power and companies can contribute to the transformation, no longer consumer to become transformative.

• Reverse Manufacturing: Transformation industries aim to collect post-industry packaging, reprocessing them to reuse and/or recycling. Generating solutions such as polyethylene movies; Bubin coils with a shrink and kraft paper; Kraft paper singer; various adhesive tapes; injected and rigid extrusion packaging in PP; and movies with recycled resins (PCR).
• Coprocessing: A definitive solution within the concept of circular economy is the replacement of fossil fuels and raw materials in cement manufacturing, with energy and material material valorization.

This content was originally published in Brazil should accelerate investments in the circular economy on CNN Brazil.

Source: CNN Brasil