Kingspan Insulated Panels North America and Seabin™ have partnered up to launch the first ocean clean up initiative for Los Angeles, California. Marina del Rey, the largest man-made marina in North America, is the second location in Seabin’s 100 Cities by 2050 campaign, with the program expecting to capture 120 tons of marine waste and microplastics from the waterways over a three-year period.

Kingspan are the first corporate partner to sign up for the LA campaign. The success of Seabin’s Sydney campaign saw the likes of Discovery Channel, Yamaha, IBM, Ben & Jerrys, and more come onboard as corporate sponsors and partners to help save our oceans.

Kingspan’s 10-year Planet Passionate sustainability program includes a commitment to supporting five ocean clean-up projects around the world by 2025. Kingspan launched the partnership with Seabin last year, helping to collect over 16 tons of marine litter in a 12-month period in Sydney, Australia.

“Planet Passionate is Kingspan’s commitment to the natural world,” said Brent Trenga, Director of Sustainability for Kingspan North America. “Seabin’s efforts and values align with Kingspan’s, and that’s what makes this partnership so special. We’ve witnessed great success in Sydney Harbor, and we expect the same for the projects here in the U.S.” 

According to the United Nations, 300 million tons of plastic waste is produced each year - and more than 17 million tons of plastic ends up in oceans. Seabin’s game-changing technology skims the surface of the water to collect plastics, microplastics, fibers and other foreign objects that should not be in waterways. The collected debris is recycled or sent to a waste management facility. Seabin’s ultimate goal is to eliminate the need for Seabins altogether.

“We are thrilled to see Kingspan continue their support for Seabin™ in LA, as we scale globally, and I believe this is a testament to the tangible, positive impact we have achieved through our partnership together in Sydney.,” said Pete Ceglinski, CEO and co-founder of Seabin.

This program compliments Kingspan’s other sustainability initiatives. Kingspan’s 2020 Planet Passionate report highlighted 573 million plastic (PET) bottles recycled into insulation manufacturing processes – placing Kingspan on track to upcycling 1 billion PET bottles by 2025. Their commitment to the planet is evident in both their business model and their partnerships.

To learn more about the partnership, watch a video here.