Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Biodegradable Plastic Products May Help Ease the Landfill Problem

Plastics are useful, but they comprise much of the waste that end up in landfills. Plastics are non-biodegradable and when they do disintegrate in time, they produce toxic byproducts. So it's a good thing that researchers are now making plastics that degrade.

Biodegradable plastics can be made from plant material that naturally decompose. For example, cornstarch-based eating utensils are now being sold to backpackers and campers. Other products use molasses and other sugars. The Coca-Cola company, for example, has released a plastic bottle made of such natural ingredients to allow it to degrade in time or when exposed to certain environmental factors.

Other plastics integrate a biodegradable compound called PLGA, which allows plastic products to degrade in seawater in as fast as twenty days. Polymer researcher Robson Storey says that it's science project that will make plastics more sustainable, especially when used in the sea. Currently, there is a law against plastics being disposed on in the sea, but this new plastic may require it to be rewritten.



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