Can plastic homes save the environment and help the homeless?
One California company is making houses for the homeless out of recycled plastic building blocks that fit together like legos.
Can plastic houses solve homelessness and help the environment?
One California company is making houses out of durable building blocks made from recycled plastic that fit together like legos. LifeArk designs them as affordable housing for cities like Los Angeles, where a severe housing shortage has become a crisis of homelessness.
With 75,000 people living in tents, vehicles, makeshift shelters or temporary housing across the city, LA has the biggest homeless population in the US.
Plastics have a reputation of being flimsy and bad for the environment, producing over 300 million tons of waste a year, with only 9% of it being recycled. But LifeArk’s CEO says we’ve just been using plastic the wrong way.
These plastic homes are incredibly strong and can withstand fire and earthquakes.
The company has already built a 19 unit housing facility from an innovation grant and plans on making more across California.
So what do you think? Can homes made from recycled plastics help sustain the homeless population?