Kickstart: Running greener races, flights

Some moves to boost sustainability are turning to plastics.

Delta Air Lines is running a pilot program using polypropylene reusable cups from Turn Systems Co. for beverage service in economy seating rather than single-use paper or plastic. The cups are able to withstand hot or cold liquids and are collected at the end of the flight to be washed and go back into use.

Dubai-based Emirates airline has a new closed-loop program where plastic trays, bowls and snack containers are recycled. That material is then put into use to make utensils.

Polymers are even turning up to create more sustainable running events.

This past weekend, I was one of about 3,000 people taking part in a local race. There was a difference at water stops, though, where some of the coated paper cups were replaced with silicone reusable cups from Tampa, Fla.-based company Hiccup.

The glasses are filled and used just like paper cups, but rather than being tossed in the garbage, they're put into a special bin, collected, washed and sent to the next race.

The one place plastics were missing? The finish line. Rather than being handed a bottle of water, runners were handed an empty cup and then pointed to a refilling station.

Obviously the reuse system for glasses and foodservice products is more complicated and requires an entire system behind the scenes. But some companies are making it happen.

For a different kind of race — but one still very much focused on running a cleaner event — check out a story and column from Karen Laird in the newest issue of Sustainable Plastics, available as a free digital download.

Karen was invited by Dow Inc. to check out the Formula E race in Berlin, a Formula 1-style event but run with cars using electric engines rather than traditional internal combustion.

Although unsure at first if she wanted to attend, she now says to consider her a convert.

"There was nothing prim or subdued about the cars," Karen writes. "These were full-blooded racing machines with a top speed of over 322 kilometers per hour (200 mph). Sitting there, it also dawned on me that what I was watching was the future of electric mobility."

The Formula E series has been carbon neutral since it began.

"All waste carbon fiber is reused for new applications. The battery cells are reused and recycled at the end of life. The CO2 footprint of the car was measured from the start of the design phase onwards in order to determine all the measures that could help reduce its environmental impact."

You can check out her column here and link to the May/June issue with more from the race and other sustainability news.

In a news release timed for World Environment Day, Turkish appliances maker Arcelik AS said it recycled 192 million plastic bottles between 2016 and 2022 and converted the PET into components for its washing machines, dishwashers, dryers and air conditioners.

Arcelik said it also worked with Beko — another Turkish appliance company — and Grundig, a German home electronics brand owned by Arcelik, to recycle plastics from industrial fishing nets. More than 25 tons of nets have been converted into parts for ovens, dishwashers and washing machines since 2020.

The company has set a goal to have 40 percent of the plastics in its products come from recycled materials by 2030.