Biodegradable Plastics

Generally, plastics are produced from the petroleum and their bonds are rigid and strong make it hard to be degraded. Plastics production has soared since 1950s and with an annual increase of four percent, global plastics production was estimated to be 390.7 million metric tons in 2021. (1) At least 14 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year. (2) Plastic debris is currently the most abundant type of litter in the ocean, making up 80% of all marine debris found from surface waters to deep-sea sediments. (3) It is estimated that marine plastics are contributing to the death of more than 100,000 marine mammals every year. Plastic can affect marine species in a variety of ways, from entanglement and injury to ingestion and toxic contamination. (4)

There are many attempts to deal with plastic pollution such as (i) reduce, reuse and recycle of plastic practices, (ii) support legislation to curb plastic production and wastes (5) and (iii) another alternative way such as the synthesis of the biodegradable plastics that is becoming an interest to replace the commercial plastic nowadays. Biodegradable plastics means the plastics, produced based on plant materials or microorganisms, can be degraded by microorganisms (such as bacteria and fungi) and converted to carbon dioxide, methane, or microbial biomass under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. Some biodegradable plastics available in the market are starch-based plastics, bacteria-based plastics, soy-based plastics, cellulose-based plastics, lignin-based plastics and natural fibers reinforcement plastic (6).

The opportunities and challenges of solving environmental plastic pollution and factors driving the uptake of biodegradable plastics perspectives are raised. (7) For biodegradable plastics to become a successful strategy to combat global plastic pollution, not only their end-of-life scenarios have to be considered, but equally important are the availability of resources (raw material and manufacturing facilities) for production as well as the infrastructure needs to collect these plastics for composting or digestion (8).

Ref:
1. https://www.statista.com/statistics/282732/global-production-of-plastics-since-1950/
2. https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-brief/marine-plastic-pollution
3. https://news.cision.com/bcmpr/r/h2-industries-set-to-clear-the-oceans-of-plastic-waste-and-
4. https://www.fauna-flora.org/news/how-does-plastic-pollution-affect-marine-life/
5. https://www.oceanicsociety.org/resources/7-ways-to-reduce-ocean-plastic-pollution-today/
6. https://omnexus.specialchem.com/polymer-properties/properties/biodegradable#types
7. D. Moshood et al. “Biodegradable plastic applications towards sustainability: A recent
innovations in the green product”, cleaner Engineering and Technology 6 (2022),100404
8. Markus Flury and Ramani Narayan, “Biodegradable plastic as an integral part of the solution to plastic waste pollution of the environment”, Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry 2021, 30:100490

By: Moe Thazin Shwe, SOLEN Research Associate – IPC panel member
Edited by: Hendra WINASTU, SOLEN Principal Associate – IPC panel coordinator
Date: 23 December 2022
Article#: SOLEN-IPC-0006

The Former Article: https://solenvn.com/en/solid-waste/
The Latter Article: https://solenvn.com/en/microplastic-to-our-gastrointestinal-microbiota/