The Lake Farm Centre is home to 90 intellectually and physically challenged adult residents, who range in age from 20 to 77. They just received desks and chairs made from recycled plastic.
Recycled-plastic desks support local learning and keep waste out of the water supply.
Extrupet, Africa’s leading PET and HDPE bottle recycling company, joined forces with PETCO, the industry body responsible for PET recycling in South Africa, and the Kenton-based African Marine Waste Network, to donate nine desks and 36 chairs to Lake Farm Centre. The furniture was manufactured by Extruwood, using the caps and labels of plastic bottles recycled at Extrupet.
The donation to Lake Farm went a long way to benefit the centre’s literacy programme, according to volunteer Marjorie Moore.
“The [literacy] classes instil a sense of pride and self-worth and promote independence and life skills while developing healthy attitudes,” she said.
“Having proper desks and chairs creates more of a classroom environment and enables more people with disabilities to join our classes.”
A further benefit, said Moore, was that the donated furniture was comfortable, yet also virtually indestructible, meaning it typically would not need to be replaced.
“Given the severe shortage of desks in South Africa and many other parts of the world, and with prevailing issues of deforestation, there was a pressing need for alternative resources to be tapped,” said Wadhwani.
“These desks and chairs provide a real win-win solution, as they benefit both people and the environment. They divert waste that would otherwise have ended up in our landfills or oceans.” – Joint managing director of Extrupet, Chandru Wadhwani
Extruwood produces recycled plastics profiles used for multiple applications, including pallets, decking and outdoor furniture. These profiles (which are also often referred to as planks) are made from recycled polyethylene. This plastic is post-consumer waste that would otherwise have become part of the South African waste stream.
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