BiobankMulch

Biobanknote is a Colombian company, has developed a highly sustainable product, consisting of the manufacture of a ring made from the the waste of banknotes withdrawal from the circulation, used as a protective element of newly planted young trees. The foregoing allows this solution to be qualified as an advance in sustainable developments for the waste of circulated banknotes.

The product called BIOBANKMULCH®, patent pending, is being produced in Colombia, in a factory exclusively dedicated to such purposes, with special technology for its production, due to the conditions required by the process and the different organic materials.

The result of this technique can be appreciated in the benefits that this ring brings to planted young trees, providing them with a protection mechanism against competition from the grass surrounding the tree. In addition, is the accumulation of moisture in the area in contact with the soil, providing and maintaining a beneficial environment for the roots of the plant, generating an “mini-ecosystem” under the ring, thanks to the presence of controlled concentration of fungi (mycorrhizae), beneficial bacteria and other species that contribute to the health and good strong growth of the tree. This CO2 capture can be identified in two ways, as follows:

Direct

-Contribution of the storage of CO2, due to its slow incorporation into the soil.
-Improves condition of the soil
-Stabilizes structure and porosity of the soil

Indirect

-Improves development of young plants
-Selection of microorganisms and mycorrhizae is incorporated into the ring to increase the growth of plants.

Banknote waste in many countries is taken to landfills or incinerated, causing negative effects on the environment and consequently climate change.

BiobankMulch is a product that benefits the soil efficiently. About 13,500 rings have been made, using an amount of banknote waste of about 10.5 tons. These tons used in the manufacture of rings have reduced their impact by returning to the soil under a natural composting process when in contact with the soil.

The 13,500 rings have enriched at least an area of 100,000 square meters, where the 13,500 trees have been planted, because these rings, in contact with the soil, capture and store a large amount of CO2 that benefits the soil.

This process becomes a true and effective circular economy, when cotton bills are manufactured, distributed and enter circulation to subsequently go through classification processes and depending on their condition, they are destroyed to be converted into briquettes. With BiobankMulch these waste return to the soil, benefiting it exponentially.

This manufacturing technique can be implemented in any country where banknotes printed on cotton circulate.

The implementation of Biobanknote is among the best sustainable solutions developed, which is now part of a policy of a complete circular economy. the closing of the cash cycle in banknotes printed on cotton papers when they are used after their withdrawal from circulation and destruction, with the manufacture of rings with light manufacturing processes and components of organic origin, is completed by providing surprising benefits to the soil, subsoil and ensuring the growth of the newly planted young tree.

BiobankMulch is a solution that contributes to the circular economies of countries and in particular to central banks with banknotes printed on cotton. These rings can be used in the tree planting programs of the Ministries of the Environment and/or environmental entities, contributing widely to the improvement of soils and the creation of forests for reforestation purposes.

BiobankMulch is a development that is easy to implement and is not very expensive, allowing rapid implementation with an adaptation of ring production, in accordance with tree planting programs. These rings have sufficient shelf life and can be stored for some time. Small ring factories can be built in different central bank branches or cities, depending on the level of banknote waste production.

The processes of disposal of banknote waste currently used, such as incineration and placing in landfills, cause harmful effects on the environment. BiobankMulch, unlike current practices, offers great benefits to the soil, greatly reducing the impacts on the generation of greenhouse gases.

The impact of this innovation called BiobankMulch is minimal, both in its production or manufacturing operations, and in its natural composting process in contact with the soil. The balance in the carbon footprint calculator could be negative, if compared to incineration or landfill processes. BiobankMulch by storing CO2 in the soil, there is maximum use of the raw material, in this case, cotton as the main carbon generating agent.