Here’s your weekly recap—the most viewed news stories on our site for the week ended September 16, 2023.
 
Kimberly-Clark is celebrating a major milestone in its ambitious drive towards green energy with the official opening of a new onshore wind farm that will supply around 80% of its U.K. electrical power needs. The £75 million wind farm, which was built in just 18 months in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, is the largest wind asset owned by Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust (ORIT), a company managed by Octopus Energy Generation. Kimberly-Clark has a Power Purchase Agreement for the energy generated.
 
As the global personal care giant’s first wind farm project outside of North America, the 50 MW 12-turbine Cumberhead facility will supply the company with approximately 160,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of renewable energy every year. This will result in a total emissions reduction of 55,625 MTCO2e per year – the equivalent of taking 38,628 passenger vehicles off the road every year.
 
In other news, The Lycra Company announced that two employees presented at the 62nd Dornbirn Global Fiber Congress (GFC) in Dornbirn, Austria. “Industrially-Compostable Lycra Fiber” is was presented on Sept. 13 by Nicholas Kurland, Ph.D., innovation strategy manager at The Lycra Company. The personal care market has been transformed through the incorporation of stretch fibers into diapers to improve fit and performance; however, to date, there are limited avenues to avoid landfill at end-of-life. This discussion proposes a solution for single-use hygiene garments, focused on upgrading the spandex with an industrially-compostable fiber, in order to improve compatibility with sustainable waste streams. Meanwhile, Jean Hegedus, director of sustainable business development at The Lycra Company, presented­­­ a lecture on “Recyclability of Garments with Stretch Fibers: Challenges and Solutions.”
 
Here are our top 3 most viewed stories from the past week:
 
1. Kimberly-Clark Professional Launches First-Ever Wind Farm
 
2. Lycra to Present Industrially-Compostable Fiber at Dorbirn Global Fiber Congress
 
3. Glatfelter, Ekman Partner to Distribute Abaca Pulp