Plastic is a serious problem. Born with solution to make our lives easier, from textiles to food packaging… it has quickly become a major pollutant.

In fact, the plastic produced to date still exists, and will continue to do so for another thousand years. But that’s not all: its resistance makes it into the wild, impacting the lives of many animals, first and foremost sea turtles, but also the humans’ ones, who breathe and ingest microplastics, totaling an estimated 5 grams per week.

This is what was revealed to us by Plastic Free, a voluntary association that has more than 1,000 referrals throughout Italy. It is committed to informing and raising awareness among as many people as possible about the dangers of plastic pollution, including by activating on the ground through various projects, including environmental cleanup events.

THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN AGRATI AND PLASTIC FREE

An introduction webinar was held by the association to the employees at the Italy level. It allowed a thorough understanding of the situation. After that, Agrati took to the field, collaborating with Plastic Free during two environmental clean-up events.

The first took place on Friday, April 19, 2024 with some colleagues from the Tronzano Vercellese plant, at a degraded area in Santhià (VC). There our employees/volunteers cleaned up the sides of a suburban road, collecting a total of 134 bags weighing 1,250 kilograms of plastic and trash.

The second event took place at the urban center of Santa Margherita (MB) on Saturday, April 20, 2024. Agrati, as the sponsor of the clean up, rolled up its sleeves by helping to collect about 10 additional bags weighing 250 kg of garbage, consisting mainly of cigarette ends.

What was most astounding to the participants was the amount of garbage that could be identified and collected, as well as the carelessness of the people who helped generate it, polluting the environment.

Sometimes a small gesture, such as throwing your waste in the first available trash can or going to the recycling center to dispose of specific items, can really make a difference, contributing to the cleanliness, not pollution, of our planet.

We thank all colleagues who took part in the initiative and Plastic Free, for the notions provided and for allowing us to contribute to environmental protection.