AC Energy is scaling up its waste management program by producing eco-bricks out of plastic collected from solar panel packaging materials.
The power firm has piloted the circularity approach in its 120-megawatt (MW) solar plant in Alaminos, Laguna construction site, diverting away from landfills a total of 32,540 kilogram (kg) of plastic collected from the solar panel packaging materials—or the equivalent of about 25 compact size cars—to be upcycled into eco-bricks and utilized in building solar plant facilities.
“This pilot plastic waste conversion project will allow us to close the loop and reduce the environmental impact in our construction sites and host communities. With the success of this first run, we hope to replicate this program in our other project sites as we continue expanding our presence in the country and abroad,” Irene S. Maranan, AC Energy’s vice president and head of corporate communications and sustainability, said.
“Sustainability is fully integrated in our company’s strategy and vision of achieving 5,000 MW of renewables by 2025,” Maranan added.
According to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the global demand for plastic will continue to grow and likely double in the next 20 years. However, only nine percent of the total plastic produced is recycled today, and it is estimated that eight million tons of plastic leak into the environment.
AC Energy intends to extend this circular approach within its project locations by developing Eco-hub recycling facilities through partnerships with the local community, through the segregation of garbage, and the set-up of collection points in sari-sari stores, groceries, markets, and shops where plastic products are usually found.
The firm said these partnerships “aim to provide sustainable supply chains with community involvement, a key objective of the Eco-hub recycling facility.” This project will soon be implemented in Ilocos Norte in partnership with the provincial government, and will be the first of many such sustainability projects that AC Energy envisions to create within its developments, according to the company.
“Through its partnership with innovative environmental solutions group, Green Antz Builders Inc., AC Energy can successfully integrate a circular approach in its renewable energy developments to fulfill its parallel goal of protecting the environment, creating jobs to reignite the economy, and engaging its host communities meaningfully while creating clean energy.” Since 2018, AC Energy has invested over P300 million in sustainability projects focused on environmental and community initiatives.
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