OneSails GBR opens sail loft doors to collect end-of-life material with Clean Sailors
by Clean Sailors 23 Mar 2023 00:48 PDT
OneSails GBR (East) has opened the doors of its Suffolk sail loft for the collection of old and end-of-life sail materials, joining Clean Sailors' global project, ReSail. The partnership underlines OneSails' commitment to leading the way in sustainable practices.
Sails are strong and durable, made to withstand Earth's toughest environments including UV light, saltwater, and wind. Made from complex synthetic materials, sails aren't formally recycled anywhere in the world and currently 97% of sails end up in a landfill or are incinerated at the end of their life.
To date, OneSails is the only sailmaker to create a high performance, durable, ISO-certified recyclable sail membranes, named 4T FORTE™. The glues, resins and solvents used in the sail making process have been replaced by heat fusion, and the base polymer is 100% recyclable in a standard waste separation process.
OneSails GBR (East) is now turning its attention to old sails and end-of-life sailcloth.
John Parker from OneSails GBR (East) commented, "Whether its recycling 4T FORTE™ sails, lowering the carbon footprint of the sailmaking process, or upcycling and re-selling second-hand sails we are improving our efforts towards achieving a circular economy."
John continued, "A lifetime of sailing and being on the water comes hand in hand with a respect for the sea. Joining ReSail is the natural next step in helping to reduce our impact on the environment."
ReSail by Clean Sailors was launched globally in March 2022, following a successful pilot in the South West UK, in 2021. ReSail allows sailors around the world to search for and find local drop-off points for their old sails, sheets and lines, materials which are then used as a raw resource for a variety of different products and businesses. The ReSail project now has ~30 partners in over 15 countries around the world, welcoming OneSails GBR (East) as a major partner in the UK.
OneSails has already been a trusted partner through our EcoOpti project because of their attention to interrogating the sailmaking process for more sustainable opportunities. We are really delighted to welcome them to our ReSail platform, also, and to have them continue to encourage the industry's commitment to reducing waste, and to evaluate end-of-life opportunities, alongside virgin sail production" says Holly Manvell, founder of Clean Sailors.
Clean Sailors, a not-for-profit, was set up in 2020 to create new standards of cleaner sailing and to better advocate and educate the global marine community on a range of environmental initiatives specific to sailing. ReSail, supported by Henri-Lloyd, is the latest platform on a growing list of conservation-based initiatives that Clean Sailors has created all with the common goal - to help clean up and protect the environment so used and loved by the global sailing community.
ReSail is a free-to-list and free-to-use platform. All applications to join can be made via the website at resailbycleansailors.com.