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We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? |
We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? No we are all going to live for ever! |
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Revision as of 14:41, 3 December 2010
Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.
The first recorded use of the term upcycling was by Reiner Pilz of Pilz GmbH in an interview by Thornton Kay of Salvo in 1994. [1]
We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? No we are all going to live for ever!
Background
The term upcycling was also used by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their 2002 book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. They state that the goal of upcycling is to prevent wasting potentially useful materials by making use of existing ones. This reduces the consumption of new raw materials when creating new products. Reducing the use of new raw materials can result in a reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and even greenhouse gas emissions.
Upcycling is the opposite of downcycling, which is the other half of the recycling process. Downcycling involves converting materials and products into new materials of lesser quality. Most recycling involves converting or extracting useful materials from a product and creating a different product or material. [2]
For example, during the recycling process of plastics other than those used to create bottles, many different types of plastics are mixed together, resulting in a hybrid. This hybrid, marked by the ♹ symbol, is used in the manufacturing of plastic lumber applications.
In developing countries, where new raw materials are often expensive, upcycling is commonly practiced, largely due to impoverished conditions.
Upcycling has seen an increase in use due to its current marketability and the lowered cost of reused materials. [3] Inhabitat, a blog devoted to sustainability and design, holds an annual upcycling design competition with entries coming from around the globe. [4]
Examples of do-it-yourself upcycling
Individuals have found ways to create upcycling projects that anyone can do at home. Some of these projects include:
- Creating upcycled Upcycling Awareness Ribbons [5]
- Creating wallets from tires [6]
- Creating chairs from campaign signs [7]
- Designing children's clothing from reclaimed knits [8]
- Turning an old computer hard disk drive into a digital clock. [9]
- Melting plastic bags into more durable bags
- Piano key art [10]
- Making children's clothing [11]
See also
References
- ^ Thornton Kay, Salvo in Germany - Reiner Pilz, p14 SalvoNEWS No99 11 October 1994 [1]
- ^ Wastes - Resource Conservation - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. " [2]". Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2009-12-03
- ^ Goldsmith, Belinda (2009-09-30). " Trash or treasure? Upcycling becomes growing green trend". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-12-02
- ^ "Inhabitat's Spring Greening Competition", Inhabitat. Retrieved 2010-06-02
- ^ User "mayari" (2010-05-15). " http://mayari.net/products/upcycling-awareness-ribbon/407". Upcycling Designer and Artist.
- ^ User "kenhfisher" (2008-04-19). " http://www.instructables.com/id/bike-innertube-wallet/". Instructables. Retrieved 2009-12-03
- ^ User "wholman" (2008-06-23). " http://www.instructables.com/id/Cardboard-Chairs-101/". Instructables. Retrieved 2009-12-03
-
^ User "Alishye" (2010-05-20). "
http://www.coolmompicks.com/2008/04/courtney_chu_tee_dresses.php". Cool Mom Earth Day Picks April 22, 2008.
"
http://www.coolmompicks.com/2008/12/editors_best_of_2008_the_coole_3.php". Cool Mom Pick of the Year December 31, 2008.
" http://www.etsy.com/featured_seller.php?featured_user_id=8151". Etsy Featured Seller July 28, 2008. - ^ "How To Scrap An Old Hard Drive", Retrieved 2010-11-12
- ^ " Binky's Art" uses reclaimed antique ivory piano keys and reclaims them from pianos that are beyond repair. The ivory veneers are cleaned, mounted, scrimshawed (tattooed), painted and framed as original art. They have custom made awards, trophies, and art since 2004 by Roger VanBoxtel and Robin Ritchie. Over 10,000 antique keys have been upcycled. Retrieved 2010-11-27
- ^ " Green Pomegranate". Retrieved 2010-11-27
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We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? |
We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? No we are all going to live for ever! |
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Revision as of 14:41, 3 December 2010
Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.
The first recorded use of the term upcycling was by Reiner Pilz of Pilz GmbH in an interview by Thornton Kay of Salvo in 1994. [1]
We talked about the impending EU Demolition Waste Streams directive. "Recycling," he said, "I call it downcycling. They smash bricks, they smash everything. What we need is upcycling where old products are given more value not less." He despairs of the German situation and recalls the supply of a large quantity of reclaimed woodblock from an English supplier for a contract in Nuremberg while just down the road a load of similar blocks was scrapped. In the road outside his premises, was the result of the Germans' demolition waste recycling. It was a pinky looking aggregate with pieces of handmade brick, old tiles and discernible parts of useful old items mixed with crushed concrete. Is this the future for Europe? No we are all going to live for ever!
Background
The term upcycling was also used by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their 2002 book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. They state that the goal of upcycling is to prevent wasting potentially useful materials by making use of existing ones. This reduces the consumption of new raw materials when creating new products. Reducing the use of new raw materials can result in a reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and even greenhouse gas emissions.
Upcycling is the opposite of downcycling, which is the other half of the recycling process. Downcycling involves converting materials and products into new materials of lesser quality. Most recycling involves converting or extracting useful materials from a product and creating a different product or material. [2]
For example, during the recycling process of plastics other than those used to create bottles, many different types of plastics are mixed together, resulting in a hybrid. This hybrid, marked by the ♹ symbol, is used in the manufacturing of plastic lumber applications.
In developing countries, where new raw materials are often expensive, upcycling is commonly practiced, largely due to impoverished conditions.
Upcycling has seen an increase in use due to its current marketability and the lowered cost of reused materials. [3] Inhabitat, a blog devoted to sustainability and design, holds an annual upcycling design competition with entries coming from around the globe. [4]
Examples of do-it-yourself upcycling
Individuals have found ways to create upcycling projects that anyone can do at home. Some of these projects include:
- Creating upcycled Upcycling Awareness Ribbons [5]
- Creating wallets from tires [6]
- Creating chairs from campaign signs [7]
- Designing children's clothing from reclaimed knits [8]
- Turning an old computer hard disk drive into a digital clock. [9]
- Melting plastic bags into more durable bags
- Piano key art [10]
- Making children's clothing [11]
See also
References
- ^ Thornton Kay, Salvo in Germany - Reiner Pilz, p14 SalvoNEWS No99 11 October 1994 [1]
- ^ Wastes - Resource Conservation - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. " [2]". Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2009-12-03
- ^ Goldsmith, Belinda (2009-09-30). " Trash or treasure? Upcycling becomes growing green trend". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-12-02
- ^ "Inhabitat's Spring Greening Competition", Inhabitat. Retrieved 2010-06-02
- ^ User "mayari" (2010-05-15). " http://mayari.net/products/upcycling-awareness-ribbon/407". Upcycling Designer and Artist.
- ^ User "kenhfisher" (2008-04-19). " http://www.instructables.com/id/bike-innertube-wallet/". Instructables. Retrieved 2009-12-03
- ^ User "wholman" (2008-06-23). " http://www.instructables.com/id/Cardboard-Chairs-101/". Instructables. Retrieved 2009-12-03
-
^ User "Alishye" (2010-05-20). "
http://www.coolmompicks.com/2008/04/courtney_chu_tee_dresses.php". Cool Mom Earth Day Picks April 22, 2008.
"
http://www.coolmompicks.com/2008/12/editors_best_of_2008_the_coole_3.php". Cool Mom Pick of the Year December 31, 2008.
" http://www.etsy.com/featured_seller.php?featured_user_id=8151". Etsy Featured Seller July 28, 2008. - ^ "How To Scrap An Old Hard Drive", Retrieved 2010-11-12
- ^ " Binky's Art" uses reclaimed antique ivory piano keys and reclaims them from pianos that are beyond repair. The ivory veneers are cleaned, mounted, scrimshawed (tattooed), painted and framed as original art. They have custom made awards, trophies, and art since 2004 by Roger VanBoxtel and Robin Ritchie. Over 10,000 antique keys have been upcycled. Retrieved 2010-11-27
- ^ " Green Pomegranate". Retrieved 2010-11-27