Milkweed Sponges Clean Oil, Save Butterflies

Milkweed Sponges Clean Oil, Save Butterflies
Dec-10-14
A Canadian company has developed a line of oil-spill kits made of milkweed fibers, providing an inexpensive and environmentally friendly option that could also help boost the Monarch butterfly population.

The oil-spill kits, from the Quebec-based Protect-Style, are made up of polypropylene tubes that have been filled with the light, hollow fibers of the milkweed. These fibers, which are light enough to float on air currents, naturally repel water and can absorb four times more oil than polypropylene alone—with no chemical treatments or additives. Each tube is able to absorb 53 gallons of oil, and the kits are particularly useful for cleaning oil spills outdoors. The company has already been contracted to supply the milkweed-based kits to Parks Canada.

As an added bonus, the industrial milkweed crops will provide a new source of food and habitat for the Monarch butterfly, which have been in decline lately.

Image: A comparison shows how much milkweed material, right, and polypropylene, centre, would be needed to fully absorb a spill of the diesel oil in the container on the left. (Margo McDiarmid/CBC)

Milkweed Sponges Clean Oil, Save Butterflies


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[CBC.CA]
[ENCORE3.COM]
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I guess this will give MultiSorb Technologies a run for their money.
Posted by Mark Keys on January 12, 2015

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