The Republic of Fiji has embarked on a plastic recycling project, becoming the first country worldwide to utilise specialised equipment for transforming unsorted and uncleaned plastic into practical products, The Fiji Times reported.  

The Centre for Appropriate Technology and Development (CATD) spearheads this pilot initiative, aiming to bolster Fiji's waste management strategies. 

CATD’s Rob Denney highlighted the significance of the Zero Emissions Shipping Project in an email, aligning with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Biman Prasad's call for enhanced waste management.  

According to Denney, the equipment's arrival marks a substantial stride towards refining the country's waste disposal system. 

The recycling machinery will facilitate the processing of different plastic types at the community level, including villages, resorts and schools.  

The Fiji Times quoted said Rob Denney as saying: "A large plant at Naboro could convert all Fiji’s waste plastic, including the material that is already on site.”   

This process involves shredding, melting, and compacting mixed plastic, which is then encased in a protective woven layer. 

The final products range from frisbees wrapped in cotton to signposts and cricket stumps sheathed in fibreglass.  

The items, whether extruded or pressure moulded in aluminium moulds, maintain uniform qualities and can be customised with various outer wrappings.  

This outer layer is crucial as it shields the plastic from UV radiation, preventing degradation into microplastics. 

The project's versatility in creating products of diverse sizes and shapes has garnered international attention, with Fiji securing orders for signposts destined for Australia.  

Denney added: "We have an order for signposts to be exported to Australia and MOUs with various resorts and schools and local governments to supply plastic and buy product."