jimlad
Chief Petty Officer
- Joined
- Feb 4, 2007
- Messages
- 569
Staff at a Chinese animal centre are making sure nothing goes to waste with a plan to turn panda poo into paper.
Liao Jun, a researcher at Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Base, said the idea came to workers during a visit to Thailand where they found paper made from elephant dung.
They thought panda droppings would produce an even finer quality paper and are in talks with several paper mills.
It is hoped waste from Jing Jing, Ke Bi, Ya Ya and dozens of other pandas will be turned into reams of office paper and rolls of wrapping paper.
They hope to have a production line available by next year.
Liao said: "We are not interested in doing this for the profits but to recycle the waste.
"It's environmentally friendly. We can use the paper ourselves and also we can sell whatever is left over."
The centre's 40 bamboo-fed pandas produce about two tons of droppings a day, but it is not yet known how much paper this would produce.
Liao Jun, a researcher at Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Base, said the idea came to workers during a visit to Thailand where they found paper made from elephant dung.
They thought panda droppings would produce an even finer quality paper and are in talks with several paper mills.
It is hoped waste from Jing Jing, Ke Bi, Ya Ya and dozens of other pandas will be turned into reams of office paper and rolls of wrapping paper.
They hope to have a production line available by next year.
Liao said: "We are not interested in doing this for the profits but to recycle the waste.
"It's environmentally friendly. We can use the paper ourselves and also we can sell whatever is left over."
The centre's 40 bamboo-fed pandas produce about two tons of droppings a day, but it is not yet known how much paper this would produce.
