Her sex and nationality does not make it less of a problem that such a product is a bad idea because of the lasting and irreparable pollution it will cause. You don't need to have solved a "real-world" problem, which I'm sure many here do every day, to see that. Please be more respectful. There is a need for a solution for the plastic waste, but this ain't it. Maybe take a look at how other countries solve it or are not solving it. Burning with adequate filtering seems to be the best candidate for it, besides not producing it in the first place.
I'm mainly annoyed at the glass-half-empty, an-imperfect-solution-is-worse-than-no-solution attitude on display by many commenters in this thread. I don't accept the assumption of "lasting and irreparable pollution" from this product. I'll bet a significant sum that the alternative fate for most of her waste plastic feedstock will have been low-temperature incineration (resulting in local air pollution by particulates, dioxins, etc.)
We sometimes need to implement solutions to problems that are practical for the time and location. They may not be perfect, but no one else has managed to parachute in an ideal solution for the issue of plastic waste. The perfect is the enemy of the good. This lady is actually doing something, which commands an awful lot more respect from me than random internet bro comments.
The thing is: we're talking about Africa here, where trash is often enough either dumped somewhere or burned without any filters at all. Many Western trash burners are only operating because of old licenses, they would not pass inspections if constructed today ffs.
A solution that disposes of the plastic in a form that doesn't cause more harm while being more usable to the people is always the better thing to do.
But does it really disposes the plastic in a form that does not cause more harm? That's the entire argument. It's just as bad for the environment as it would be if you'd just dump it on landfills. But than you can dig out landfills later on, when you've got a better solution, in a centralized and known location. But who is going to track down and demolish all the pavements in the decades to come? These bricks are essentially guaranteeing that the plastic used will cause micro plastic pollution for generations to come.
And even if you never find a solution, having the plastic in a landfill makes it possible to at least control the circumstances. You can burry it, reducing the exposure to the elements, like sun and wind. The more I think about these bricks the more I'm sure that's the worst thing you can do with plastic, except for just dumping it into the ocean.
