Welcome back to Reedcycler’s Believe it or Not! For this week’s weird waste, we’ll be taking a look at an island made from plastic bottles, and the heartwarming story of an orchestra who rose from humble beginnings in a landfill.
Orchestra plays instruments made entirely of trash
The slum of Cateura, Paraguay sits upon a landfill. Residents survive by separating recyclables from the trash, and roughly 40% of the children stop school in order to help their parents work. It was amidst this chaotic environment that The Recycled Orchestra of Cateura arose.
The orchestra plays instruments made entirely from what is disposed of at the landfill; violins and cellos are crafted from oil drums, guitars from packing crates, and flutes from water pipes and spoons. And the instruments are considered to play better than many of the wooden ones made in China.
The orchestra consists of 35 members, and music lessons are provided to close to 200 children, who are also taught how to build their instruments.
Spiral Island adds plastic to the ocean in a good way
I have spoken about buildings, boats, and bridges all built from bottles, but Spiral Island challenged each of those ideas with what can be done with plastic. Made from over 250,000 bottles, the island was held together by nets and mangroves, with a base of plywood, bamboo, and sand resting atop the flotsam. The island boasted a two-story house, a solar oven, a self-composting toilet, and three beaches.
The island was destroyed by Hurricane Emily in 2005, but was rebuilt under the name of Joyxee Island. The new island contains 100,000 bottles, and was a third of a size larger.
This post is part of the “Reedcycler’s Believe it or Not” blog series, which showcases weird waste-related stories. Tune in on Mondays each week for more.
CATEGORIES: Campus Recycling Waste Reduction
2 thoughts on “Reedcycler's Believe it or Not: Instruments and Islands”
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You raise a good point, Rachel! I chose that wording because the way in which Spiral Island was constructed helps prevent the breakdown of the plastic bottles; the plastic bottles normally break down through photodegradation when exposed to UV rays, but are protected by the sand and mango trees here.
If you’re curious, I found this resource, which has compiled various interviews and videos about the islands:
http://en.permaculturescience.org/english-pages/4-energy-ecotechnology/7-bioconstruction/innovators/richard-sowa
How can you add plastic to the ocean in a good way? Isn’t it still going to break down into smaller and smaller pieces over time for creatures to consume?