Turtl's Wetsuits vs. Neoprene - 80% Less CO2!

• 80% Less CO2 Emissions

• 2lbs of Plastic Removed

 

While catching waves or exploring the ocean's depths have you ever wondered what your trusty neoprene wetsuit might be made of? Spoiler alert: It's petroleum.

Now, pause for a moment and ask yourself, is your passion for the ocean inadvertently contributing to a bigger environmental problem?

Annually, neoprene wetsuit production emits a staggering 244 million pounds of CO2. With the average passenger vehicle emitting about 4.6 metric tons - that's equivalent to the yearly emissions from cars in a medium to large city like Sitges, Spain, or Fort Lauderdale, USA.

However, there is hope on the horizon. The Galapagos wetsuit slashes the carbon footprint by nearly 80% compared to traditional neoprene suits. 

 

 

The Petroleum Problem

 

Problem No 1: Carbon Emissions During Production

 

Let's start with the villain of the story. Petroleum-based neoprene is made with a chemical called chloroprene. The EPA named chloroprene a human carcinogen in 2010. In the U.S chloroprene is manufactured at the Denka Performance Elastomer plant in St John’s Parish, in Louisiana, with the average wetsuit releases a whopping 28.61 lbs of CO2 emissions.¹

This area has now come to be known as “Cancer Alley”. An area which contains over 200 petrochemical plants and refineries and as the name suggests has the highest rates of cancer in the USA.

The families that live in St John’s Parish were officially warned of the dangers of the Denka plant in 2016, when the EPA announced their probability of contracting and dying from cancer was 50 times the national average.

But the plant is still there, and so are the communities around it, with many of its members suffering devastating health consequences from chloroprene production.

 

Problem No 2: Microplastic Shedding When Used

 

But the damage doesn't stop there. To add insult to injury, similar to when you wash your new sweater in the laundry neoprene wetsuits shed invisible pieces of themselves when used in the ocean.

The plastic microfibers found in fabric garments, detach when they are rolled around in the centrifuge of a washing machine. The same thing happens when neoprene wetsuits are rolled around in waves or submerged amongst currents. The microplastics in the neoprene detach and are released directly into animals' breeding, feeding and resting grounds. This becomes even more worrisome when we stop and think that about how many of our favorite activities are right next to these critical habitats such as surfing over coral reefs or scuba diving with live animals.

These minuscule pollutants are impossible to spot or remove and are ingested by marine animals such as fish, birds, mammals and especially turtles.²

It is well-studied how washing synthetic clothes releases microplastics into rivers and oceans, yet the impact of neoprene is frequently ignored.³ 

The Upper Gallatian is the most pristine watersheds in the continental USA. A recent study of its water, took samples from various spots along the river and confirmed what researchers had long feared: microplastics, including synthetic rubber akin to that used in neoprene wetsuits, had made their way into the USA's last surviving unpolluted body of water.⁴

 

Problem No 3: Disposal of Neoprene Releases Toxic Chemicals

The environmental footprint of neoprene grows even more by its slow decomposition rate. It can take over a century for neoprene to break down in landfills. Often wetsuits are incinerated rather than left to decompose with toxic fumes from the smoke adding even more to their carbon footprints.

An estimated 8,380 tonnes of neoprene wetsuits are sent to landfill annually. That is the equivalent yearly trash of 11,227 Americans.⁵

These wetsuits sit in landfills exposed to sunlight, which causes Carbon Black—a carcinogenic dye in wetsuits, tires, and inks—to leak from the wetsuits, stiffening them and contaminating the surrounding environment and bodies of water. This eventually enters the food chain, impacting human health.

 The conventional process to create carbon black releases large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. Globally, the process of creating carbon black creates over 1 million tonnes of CO2 per year.

However the cause of the issue is not heartless wetsuit users but rather a lack of a good solution to recycle these wetsuits at the end of their life. There are few options to responsibly dispose of neoprene. Often the best option is to reuse, fix, or upcycle your old wetsuits to minimize the carbon footprint of disposal.

Turtl Project's Wetsuit Recovery Program repurposes wetsuits that are reaching the end of their life into new products to extend their life and avoid throwing them in a landfill. The profits from these newly revitalized products directly funds 2lbs of plastic removed from the ocean through our ocean and beach cleanup program.

 

Galapagos Limestone Wetsuit: The Hero We Need

 

Solution 1: Wetsuit Production With Less Carbon

 

The Galapagos limestone wetsuit interior is made up of 85% recycled nylon and polymer. That's the same plastic as the water bottles that end up in the ocean. The layer keeping you warm is our in-house limestone compound we like to call, Monolith Rubber.

This material composition cuts the carbon footprint from 28.61lbs to just 5.87 lbs.⁷ Additionally the Galapagos colorway is especially designed to prevent the use of the carcinogenic Carbon Black - which accounted for 2.3 tons of CO2 released globally last year.

Thats a total 80% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional wetsuits.

If we swapped every petroleum wetsuit sold last year with a limestone Galapagos wetsuit, we'd have saved Mother Earth from 166.07 million lbs of CO2.⁸

To put that into perspective, it's equivalent to the carbon footprint of around 27,750 long-haul flights. Yep, you read that right - you might as well be jet-setting around the globe in terms of environmental impact.

 

Solution 2: Use Without Shedding Microplastics

 

And the reasons to move away from neoprene just keep coming.

It's simple Monolith Rubber wetsuits don't shed microplastics like their petroleum cousins.

 

Solution 3: Disposal Without Leaking Carbon Black

 

In addition, Turtl Project's wetsuits don't leak carcinogenic substances, giving you a guilt-free farewell to your old black antiquated wetsuit. Instead, the Galapagos wetsuits come in our signature blue and green!

And on top of it all if you send your wetsuit back to us through our Wetsuit Recovery Program then we can avoid any wetsuit from ever entering a landfill again.

 

Solution 4: Funds Marine Conservation and Neoprene Recovery Program

 

Not only do Galapagos suits not release microplastics, but they essentially do the opposite and collect them. For every purchase of a Galapagos wetsuit, the Turtle Team removes 2 lbs of marine plastic through our beach and ocean cleanup program.

 

There are an estimated 17 billion lbs of plastic dumped into the ocean every year. There are 8 billion people on earth. If each person picked up around 2 lbs, then we would offset the globally dumped plastic, for that year.

 

Affordability Without Compromise

 

Now, you might be wondering about the dent in your wallet. Petroleum-based wetsuits are cheap to make (typically starting at around $120). And while you want to do your bit for the planet, sometimes it's not an option if the alternative is simply too expensive.

Fear not! Turtl Project believes in making sustainability accessible. While sustainable wetsuits that use materials like Yulex may be the crème de la crème it can come at a high cost. For example, Patagonia's Yulex suits can set you back over $639. Which is a notable price difference compared to our Galapagos wetsuit priced at $287.

The problem for many water sports enthusiasts is that these costs are simply too high. If you add them on to buying gear you would need to be out on the water every day to make it worthwhile. And while we love the water many of us have other commitments in our lives.

The Galapagos wetsuit understands this problem and walks the line between affordability and quality. It offers the highest performance and the lowest environmental impact at a pocket-friendly price.

 

Commitment to Quality

 

We understand that you might be wondering if there is something you have to compromise to get a sustainable suit at that price. And the honest answer is no.

The Galapagos wetsuit comes with:

• Revolutionary Flexibility: super-stretch limestone gives more flexibility without compromising warmth.
• Superior Durability: longer lasting products, more sustainability.
• Incomparable Warmth: don't let a little cold stop you.
• 40% Weight Reduction: with a waterproof exterior and interior that means you'll never feel weighed down again.

And the Galapagos wetsuit isn’t where it ends. Stay tuned, as Turtl Project is hard at work to bring you more affordable and greener options soon.

 

Conclusion: Sustainable Wetsuits are the Future

 

Everyone can agree that neoprene is not the way to go when it comes to wetsuits if we want to keep our oceans and environment healthy. The Galapagos wetsuit isn't just keeping pace – it's leading the charge in both sustainability and affordability, reducing CO2 emissions by 80% compared to neoprene wetsuits.

At Turtl Project, we believe in making waves without sinking your budget. So, why compromise? Dive into the ocean of sustainability with the highest performance, lowest impact, and most wallet-friendly wetsuit on the market.

Let's be the difference, one wetsuit at a time.

 

 

1. Based on the CO2e emissions data from the Denka Performance Elastomer plant, the only plant making polychloroprene in the USA. Polychloroprene is made from the material butadiene. In production butadiene releases 4.59 metric tonnes CO2 emissions per metric tonne of product. To obtain the total CO2 for production of polychloroprene from butadiene, we added the CO2e from the production of butadiene (4.59), and the CO2e from the production of polychloroprene from butadiene (1.90), for a total of 6.49 metric tonnes which is higher than production of Butadiene alone.

This is equivalent to 6.49 kilograms for every kilogram of polychloroprene. The average wetsuit uses 2 kilograms of polychloroprene which equates to 12.98kg (28.616002 lbs).

This estimation directly utilizes the reported emissions data and the average weight of a wetsuit. 

2. Microplastics in marine biota: A review

3. The contribution of washing processes of synthetic clothes to microplastic pollution

4. A watershed-scale, citizen science approach to quantifying microplastic concentration in a mixed land-use river

5. Based on the average daily trash of an American being 4.5lbs

6. Limestone vs. Petroleum neoprene – why Limestone Wetsuits Win

7. Wetsuit Market by Product Type (Convertible Wetsuits, Full Wetsuits, Hooded Wetsuits), Thickness (1mm-2mm, 2mm-3mm, 3mm-4mm), Distribution Channel, End-User, Application - Global Forecast 2023-2030