United Airlines partners with fashion company to recycle expired life jackets
A partnership between United Airlines and a fashion company diverted 900 pounds
of trash from landfills in the form of expired life jackets.
According to unified aviation safety regulations, the life jackets under your
seat have to be switched out every 8 to 10 years, and while it’s obviously a
great thing that they never have to be used, they add up to over 19,000 expired
jackets per year just for United’s Boeing 737 fleet.
To save space in landfills and reduce the carbon footprint of the world’s
third-largest carrier, United Airlines has partnered with a company called B2L
to upcycle the jackets into a trendy, travel-themed collection of bags for
laundry, laptops, and the beach as well as backpacks.
“While working to dispose of expired life vests at IAD [Washington Dulles
International Airport], I wanted to find a more creative solution to divert this
material from landfill,” said Erin Taylor, an environmental affairs manager at
United. “Thankfully I was able to connect with a company who upcycles the life
vest material (typically thrown away), into fun and practical products.”
B2L or ‘Bag 2 Life’ is a German upcycling company, and the first year’s
offerings were met with positive reviews and success, diverting 900 pounds of
jackets from landfills, and winning the Germans a contract renewal for a second
year at double the volume.
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It takes hundreds and hundreds of years for these life jackets to break apart
underground, releasing methane, a potent greenhouse gas over a very short time,
as it decomposes.
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While the bags are eye-catching and go to a good cause, they are steeply priced
at well over $100 just for a shoulder bag, and $177.89 just for a small
backpack.
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