Decomp

Co-Founders: Gabriel Saunders & Isha Simon

Website: https://www.decomptech.com/ (external link) 

A Better Solution for Plastic Waste Pollution

Decomp is an organic plastic waste disposal solution that utilizes proprietary plastic-degrading microbes to facilitate the degradation of plastics in weeks.

Since 1950, humans have created 6.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic waste. Of this, only 9% has been recycled meanwhile 12% has been incinerated and 79% has been accumulating in landfills.

Plastic waste takes 400-1000 years to decompose, and as it sits in landfills, it releases harmful greenhouse gases. If the production of plastic doubles by 2050, as expected, the emissions of these greenhouse gases will be significantly increased, and climate change, along with its effects (i.e. forest fires, food insecurity, hurricanes) will be exacerbated.

Material recovery facilities (MRFs) are the first step in waste management, as waste is picked up from residences and industries and transported to these facilities to be sorted for recycling, incineration, or landfilling. Municipalities are implementing strict mandates on the amount of waste that MRFs must divert from landfills. Not all types of plastics are recyclable and only plastics with a low threshold of contamination can be recycled. Incineration can dispose of plastic waste, but it is restricted in its expansion due to adverse health risks associated with it. And landfilling impedes MRFs’ abilities to meet these mandates.

Decomp seeks to be an alternative to the status quo of plastic-processing methods. One that is able to dispose of all plastic waste - including those that are contaminated or non-recyclable - without any adverse effects to environmental or human health.