Bioplastics

An estimated 99% of all plastic is made from fossil fuels such as oil and gas. The remaining 1% is made from natural raw materials such as corn, cane sugar, or potatoes. These bio-based plastics, or bioplastics, are used for bags, food packaging, disposable cups, etc. Even though they may eventually biodegrade if disposed of properly, bioplastic behaves like ordinary plastic in the environment and therefore, cannot be a long-term solution for the plastic soup. 

 

What are bioplastics exactly? The term bioplastics itself is extremely confusing. This is because bioplastics are made from biomass, but may have exactly the same properties as ordinary plastic. Sometimes these plastics are biodegradable. If this is the case, consumers still need to know whether the plastic is biodegradable in an industrial composting facility or in the natural environment. Most forms of biodegradable plastic are only compostable in an industrial facility where temperatures of up to 65 degrees Celcius (165 degrees Fahrenheit) are used. According to legal standards, these bioplastics must be broken down to a particle size of two millimeters within twelve weeks, and full composting may take a maximum of six months. Then, there are other bioplastics packaging you can simply throw on the backyard compost heap. But what about the conditions underwater? Low temperatures, low sunlight and a lack of oxygen are not ideal for decomposing bioplastics packaging in the environment. On the other hand, you don’t want a bottle made of bioplastics to fall apart in the store. The ideal bioplastic, as a solution for the plastic soup, has yet to be invented.

As part of the Plastic Pact, the Dutch government and the business community agreed in early 2019 to stimulate the switch from oil-based plastics to plastics made from sustainably produced bio-based raw materials. This will not solve the issue of plastic pollution, but it will help to reduce dependence on fossil raw materials and to pave the way to achieving climate targets.

 

A major problem raised by waste processors is that bioplastics make the recycling of ordinary plastics more difficult. In practice, consumers deliver a mix of all kinds of plastics, rather than separate types. Companies that make compost from vegetable and garden waste also have to deal with this phenomenon. Here contamination with normal plastic and bioplastics disrupts the composting process. Many composting companies, therefore, remove all types of plastic as much as possible, including that which would break down.