Eco Report – January 9, 2026

In this week’s feature, Eco-Report’s Carrie Albright speaks with multidisciplinary artists Nual Chindamanee  and Maxwell Fertik about their art exhibit, mOrus which opens tonight at the Waldron Arts Center. This exhibit addresses the invasive mulberry tree through a series of artworks including woodworking, sculpture and papermaking.

Hundreds of Precious Plastic workshops worldwide convert waste into products and profits. Most used plastic winds up in landfills, the ocean, or the landscape, where it kills wildlife or degrades and puts toxins and microplastics into the environment. And plastic put in recycling bins often isn’t recycled— sometimes it’s shipped from rich countries to poor countries and surreptitiously burned as fuel, creating and spreading even more toxins. Some researchers characterize the global trade in plastic waste as a new form of colonialism.

The basic equipment that the Precious Plastic shops use— shredders, presses, extruders, injection molders— are all open-source designs that the global community builds, improves on, and shares, although some locations also use commercial equipment. Products that the shops make and sell range from buttons, combs, and flowerpots to bricks, beams, and large sheets used in furniture and construction.

A local shop, Peninsula Precious Plastics, was started by David Schick (the primary source for this piece) and his wife and son. It’s a happening place. Among other things, it’s where a local designer shreds prescription pill bottles and molds them into Cocoplum sunglasses frames, and where an 8th grader recently started turning broken, discarded pickleballs into dry-erase boards favored by her A.P. Environmental Sciences teacher. The location also collects plastic from and hosts groups from ServiceNow, which supports Precious Plastic shops located near its four main offices, as a way to give back to their communities.

The Peninsula shop’s setup includes several open-source machines, plus a commercial granulator, flatbed CNC, and a cold press that makes sheets smoother and uniform after they come out of the hot press. For safety (and convenience), they also have HEPA fume extractors, a downdraft table, masks, and a PlasTell spectroscope that identifies types of plastic without your having to test what temperatures they melt and smoke at. To minimize creating microplastics, they only use blades and planes to remove excess plastic, never files or sandpaper.

Precious Plastic’s origin story starts with Dutch industrial designer Dave Hakkens, who learned how little plastic is recycled, and that it’s only done at an industrial scale. He started trying to create smaller machines that anyone, anywhere could build in order to turn waste plastic into a useful and valuable resource, and some engineers joined the effort. They published and promoted their open-source designs, supported them with how-to information and online community tools, and Precious Plastic shops have been sprouting up ever since.

Last month, Hakkens announced the Precious Plastic v5 effort to expand in several ways, including by developing a plastic credits system similar to how carbon credits currently work. Backed by standards and a verification trust chain, such a market would let small plastic recyclers label their products with statements like “This product offsets 3.7 kg of new plastic” while earning additional income from foundations, government agencies, or companies that want to buy recycled plastic offsets. The v5 expansion also includes plans to research viable substitutes for plastic, such as mushroom-, seaweed-, and bamboo-based materials.

So, are you looking for a new source of income that’s creative, and hands-on with something other than a keyboard or a steering wheel? As one of the Dustin Hoffman character’s parents’ friends tells him in The Graduate (1967), I have one word for you: Plastics

Are you passionate about energy, efficiency, renewables, the environment, community action, or all of the above? Consider volunteering as an Energy Navigator with the City of Bloomington’s Bloomington Energy Works initiative. All adults and high school students are welcome to participate. Volunteer duties include educating Bloomington residents about energy saving incentives and the benefits of solar, electric appliances, sealing, and insulating.

Learn more and sign up to attend an orientation: https://bton.in/energy26

Contact: Shawn Miya (City of Bloomington Assistant Director of Sustainability) at [email protected]

Carrie Albright speaks with multidisciplinary artists Nual Chindamanee  and Maxwell Fertik about their art exhibit, mOrus which opened on January 9, 2026 at the Waldron Arts Center. This exhibit addresses the invasive mulberry tree through a series of artworks including woodworking, sculpture and papermaking.

Credits:

On Air………………………………..Julianna Dailey
On Air……………………………….Preston Rogers
Headlines……………………………Cynthia Roberts
Feature Report………………………Carrie Albright
Script…………………………………Julianna Dailey
Events Calendar…………………….Julianna Dailey
Engineer…………………………..Branden Blewett

Are you looking for a way to make a difference on environmental issues?

Eco Report is  looking for reporters, engineers, and segment producer to report facts on how we’re all affected by global climate disruption and the ongoing assaults on our air, land and water. We also celebrate ecologists, tree huggers, soil builders and other champions who actively protect and restore our natural world, particularly those who are active in south central Indiana. All levels of experience and all ages are welcome, and we provide the training you’ll need. WFHB also offers internships.

To volunteer for Eco Report, call at (812) 323-1200, or e-mail [email protected].