Tennessee enables innovation for companies like Eastman to succeed | Opinion
It’s no secret that Tennessee is a great place to be. Every year more and more people move here to take advantage of our beautiful scenery, incredible outdoor and entertainment opportunities, low taxes, and affordable cost of living.
Yet many don’t realize the Volunteer State is also a leading center for innovation in sustainability and it’s making an impact on improving the world.
Tennessee leaders have been helping companies like Eastman drive innovative solutions to solve the world’s waste problem, to not only keep our great state beautiful but to make the world a better place for the next generation.
The world faces significant and growing environmental challenges. We see them all around us. We are at a pivotal moment, and it is imperative that materials companies help lead the way by deploying innovation that moves the world toward sustainable materials that have a positive impact on the environment and help solve the challenges we are facing.
One of the reasons I joined Eastman is because of our capacity to do truly incredible things. For well over a century, we have made meaningful, life-changing contributions to society’s overall quality of life. With a focus on sustainability, I think we are at an inflection point to do that again – and it’s extremely exciting.
What is a molecular recycling facility?
At Eastman, we are focused on showing the world that we can move away from a linear economy where waste plastics end up in the landfill, the incinerator, or the environment, to a truly circular economy where this waste can be infinitely recycled and used again and again.
Today, over 260 million metric tons of plastic are being thrown away and only 12% of that waste is currently being recycled. This crisis has been years in the making, and consumers are demanding action now. Brands are facing growing climate and environmental scrutiny, resulting in companies setting aggressive goals to include recycled content in their products. And they need all of us to help them achieve their goals.
This is a huge problem, but it also creates a huge opportunity that will require collaboration. The good news is that this is already happening. We have been working with the leaders in the State of Tennessee who have helped to support our first molecular recycling facility at our largest manufacturing site located in Northeast Tennessee.
At this first new facility, we’ll be able to accept plastic waste that today often ends up in the environment and convert this waste into brand new durable products with recycled content. We are investing approximately $550 million in the facility, which is part of Eastman's overall investment of $2.25 billion in molecular recycling to dramatically reduce plastic waste and mitigate climate change around the globe.
The investment in local communities is creating jobs
The facility in Kingsport will use more than 100,000 metric tons of plastic waste every year that can’t be recycled by traditional methods. Through molecular recycling, we can convert that waste into premium specialty materials an infinite number of times with fewer greenhouse gas emissions than traditional processes. And to me, this is what innovation is all about.
Solving great challenges requires collaboration, and I would like to thank the State of Tennessee for supporting and enabling this innovation.
We’re proud to be able to build this facility in our home state, further strengthening Tennessee’s position as a leader in the circular economy. This investment in our local community is also creating jobs to develop the recycling infrastructure the world needs to solve the global waste crisis.
Eastman and Tennessee are innovating like never before. And we’re thriving together. Collectively, we are creating the next great wave of materials innovation—a wave that in my opinion will change the world.