Lego, a plastic contruction toys company based in Billun, Denmark, is hoping to go green, ctvnews.ca reports.
According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, plastics make up almost 13 percent of the municipal solid waste stream, a dramatic increase from 1960, when plastics were less than one percent of the waste stream. The agency's data show that there were 33 million tons of plastic waste generated in 2013, and only 9 percent of those was recovered for recycling. Because of this widespread use of plastic, the demand for proper end of life management is at an all-time high.
In line with that, as part of their environmental responsibility, The Lego Group plans to invest 1 billion Danish Krones or more than $185 million over the next 15 years for the development of more environmentally sustainable materials and packaging for their toys. It is an "exciting and daunting challenge" for the company, says their CEO and president, Jorgen Vig Knudstorp.
"This is a major step for the LEGO Group on our way towards achieving our 2030 ambition on sustainable materials," he adds.
A huge chunk of the budget is set to be allotted to Lego Sustainable Materials Centre at their headquarters in Denmark, which will focus on the development of eco-friendly Lego bricks and packages. The facility is set to be up and running by 2015 and 2016.
Knudstorp points out that the efforts to reduce the company's environmental impact started even way back in 2013. "We are accelerating our focus on materials," he said.
Last year alone, the company which started in 1949, made 60 billion Lego pieces. Based on this figure, the small change could go a long way to "significantly reduce [Lego's] impact on the planet," the company said in a statement, CNN reports.
So far, they have already cut the size of their packages and have also invested in wind power in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint.
More or less 100 new "specialists within the materials field" will be hired to facilitate the initiative and Lego is also looking at collaborating with experts from other companies to achieve their environmental sustainablity goal.