The Impact of Going Plastic Neutral
One of the things that has always struck us as true about solving environmental issues is the idea that results go beyond the environment. When we harness wind energy to power our facilities, air quality improves for everyone. By donating empty molasses totes for reuse, they help the Navajo Nation store water. And when our unneeded and damaged wooden pallets get turned into pellets for wood stoves, they provide heat.
It’s one of the reasons we’re glad to partner with rePurpose Global to fund the removal of as much plastic waste from nature as we use. The program benefits the environment, and it helps people.
A Carpe collection drive to gather waste in Maharashtra, India.
rePurpose Global funds “impact partners” across the globe, vetted programs that remove and properly process plastic from the natural environment. By offsetting our plastic use through rePurpose Global, we’re helping fund a first-of-its-kind project, Carpe, in Maharashtra, India. While that might sound like it’s a long way away from the Colorado Rockies, we recognize that waste is not a local issue. All too often, plastic “recycling” finds its way from the US to distant shores.
We also chose Carpe because our story actually has roots in India. Our founder and owner, Karen Hoskin, first tried rum in India more than 30 years ago and it was an instant love affair. She speaks Hindi, lived in India for more than a year, has long supported public health and environmental efforts in Uttar Pradesh (Ganga Seva) and hopes to go visit this program in person in 2022. To support Carpe felt like a win win that enables us to live our company values and support our global community.
A Closer Look at Carpe
Carpe is a nonprofit social enterprise focused on creating efficient, ethical, and self-sustaining systems for waste management in semi-urban and rural regions of Maharashtra, India. The problem of solid waste management has been largely ignored in rural India, creating a cycle of waste dumping and environmental degradation due to lack of infrastructure, capacity-building, and awareness.
Workers process waste as part of the Carpe initiative.
Carpe is starting its initiative in the small town of Phulambri, which has a population of about 20,000 people. Each household generates about 12 kg of mixed solid waste every month (approximately 26.5 lbs), about 50% of which is plastic. Without a proper waste management system, all waste is openly dumped or leaked into rivers. The Carpe plastic offset project aims to create a holistic waste management system to ensure the ethical recycling or disposal of all waste streams. The goal is also to establish a model to transform solid waste management systems in Indian cities into a zero waste paradigm.
Environmental Impact
Carpe collects and processes low-value plastic that is often overlooked or omitted from recycling programs. It is estimated that through this project, over 250 tons of waste will be prevented from leaking into the environment every year. Montanya’s funding will divert 1,720 lbs of plastic from oceans and landfills, which will in turn prevent an estimated 2.2 tons of CO2e. Those are numbers we like to see.
Social Impact
In our tourist economy in the mountains, we sometimes hear people say that plastic use isn’t a problem. Living in such a pristine environment, we aren’t forced to confront the plastic waste that accumulates in the developing world. According to rePurpose Global, indiscriminate dumping of plastic waste into the developing world combined with a lack of funding for waste management infrastructure creates a shadow recycling sector. Over 50 million informal waste pickers are trapped in poverty worldwide. By helping to fund Carpe, Montanya is helping to provide 50 families in Maharahstra, India with additional income.
Verification
We have always valued third party verification as a way for Montanya Rum fans to know that what we say is true, particularly when it comes to environmental practices (greenwashing is real). So it’s meaningful to us that rePurpose Global implements a verification process to track its Impact Partners’ on-the-ground projects.
You can help us celebrate our partnership with rePurpose Global by managing your own plastic footprint. When you offset your plastic use or make a commitment to reduce your plastic use this month, we’ll donate extra funds to rePurpose Global and enter you to win an amazing kit of reusable, everyday items designed to replace plastic. Read this post for more information.
More Sustainability in Action at Montanya Distillers:
Cradle to Cradle Certified Bottles
Proud to Be A B Corp