Dive Brief:

• Through a program called Build with Bags, various organizations in Iowa joined together to transform plastic grocery bags into park benches, tables, speed bumps and playground equipment.
• The Build with Bags program serves to reduce the environmental issues associated with using plastic bags, decrease the amount of bags the public uses and increase plastic bag recycling. 
• The group is also working to create a grant program that would fund the acquisition of recycled bags by parks and educational institutions.

Dive Insight:

Iowa recycles approximately 1.2 million tons of materials annually, but between 50% to 80% of recyclables are deposited into landfills. Food scraps comprise a majority of the waste Iowans dispose of into landfills. According to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 46% of materials landfilled are made from organic waste, including wood, paper, yard waste and food.

Iowa is using services from Fiberight, a waste-to-energy company, to eliminate waste already sitting in landfills across the state. The organization cleans landfilled waste considered recyclable, then adds enzymes, transforming the materials into liquid or a solid fiber; this is then used to create ethanol.