Pollution has been a problem that has considerably affected the oceans, since all human waste ends up there. According to a United Nations Environment Program document (2021), despite initiatives and efforts, the amount of plastic in the ocean is estimated to be between 75 and 199 million tons and without significant action, it is expected to Plastic emissions in aquatic ecosystems triple by 2040.
Fishing nets are one of the most polluting elements and aggravate the problem, since they are accidentally or deliberately thrown into the seas, causing serious effects for marine fauna, from capturing animals creating a “ghost fish”, to forming garbage islands where other debris is entangled threatening thousands of species. According to National Geographic, so far some 700 marine species have ingested plastic or have been trapped in it.
Making a contribution to the environment and thinking about future generations through the conservation of our planet and marine species, companies like Samsung have dedicated efforts to clean up the oceans and, in turn, to reuse material thrown into the sea, such as fishing nets, for input of some of its mobile products.
From the sea to the cell phone
Fishing nets are currently made up of nylon, polyamide (a petroleum derivative) or polyethylene, most of which are not biodegradable, generating a high impact on marine ecosystems, since they take time to completely degrade near 600 years.
They may even take longer to remain on the seabed, slowing down the decomposition process, or even stop since the materials are less exposed to sunlight, which helps degradation.
According to figures from Unep and FAO, it is estimated that each year in the oceans about 640,000 tons of fishing equipment are abandoned, which represents 10% of all marine debris, affecting habitats and killing 100,000 people. whales, fish, seals, turtles and other marine animals per year.
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In addition to cleaning the oceans, it is extremely important to find a second use for these materials found in the sea, in order to take advantage of them as inputs and not generate more waste. For this reason, the world is working to find solutions such as transforming fishing nets into polyamide textile fibers for the manufacture of textile fashion and accessories.
Samsung has partnered with Royal DSM, a leading company in collecting fishing nets from fishermen on the shores of the Indian Ocean. After collecting the nets, the company separates, cuts, cleans and extrudes them to develop an eco-friendly material, consisting of a minimum of 80% recycled polyamide or nylon.
Then, hand in hand with Hanwha Compound, a polymer compounding company, optimizes the material’s performance to match the company’s high-quality standards for smartphone technology. The material is transformed into polyamide resins that are built with a minimum of 20% reused fishing nets.
This new material was incorporated for the first time in the Galaxy S22 series, being the first mobile device made from recycled material. Since then, it has been used as an input throughout the Galaxy ecosystem, such as the brand’s most recent launches, the Galaxy Z Flip4 and Z Fold4, as well as the Galaxy Buds2 Pro and Galaxy Watch5 and Watch 5 Pro.
This innovation is part of Samsung’s sustainability vision, Galaxy for the Planet, a program that seeks to carry out tangible actions to care for the planet such as developing and incorporating recycled materials in all new products, eliminating single-use plastics in packaging of mobile phones, achieve zero standby power consumption for all smartphone chargers, and divert all waste from landfills by 2025.