Ecopost Turns Trash to Treasure

Writer Mary Hoff
@mkhoff Science writer & editor

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January 9, 2013 — Lorna Rutto looked around her childhood neighborhood in Nairobi, Kenya, and saw three big problems: plastic litter, disappearing trees and jobless workers. Instead of despairing, she created a company that makes fence posts and lumber from discarded bags. EcoPost has salvaged more than 1 million kilograms of plastic waste for wood-replacement products since it began in 2009.

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Ecopost Turns Trash to Treasure

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