Plastics are one of the biggest problems the Earth currently faces. They are everywhere, and they take millions of years to biodegrade. A solution against this is the production of Bioplastics.
By Nicole Weber
According to Plastics Today – an online paper focusing on all topics about plastic, the market for bioplastic production is increasing over 14% each year.
Bioplastics are plastics made with “vegetal sources, such as oils or sugar derivatives. They are an alternative to classic plastic (made with fossil fuels), because they do not damage nature,” said to Marina Garcia, a biochemist in Spain.
GreenHome, a website dedicated to sustainability, says that the carbon footprint of making bioplastics is 75% lower than those of manufacturing PET. They also are non-toxic, and won’t leak any chemicals into food you might put into a Tupperware container. The most known benefit is said to be that bioplastics are biodegradable and compostable.
“We see bioplastics everywhere, in bottles of water or Tupperware’s because they are very resistant”. The reason for it not being as commonly used is due to its high price, “it’s necessary to improve the techniques used”, says Garcia.
While it may all seem like a positive result of environmentalists, could this all be greenwashing?
Bioplastics need to be avoided, according to Paula Mcphee, the owner of a Zero Waste store called Zero Waste Emporium in Victoria, British Columbia. “The intentions behind the invention of bioplastics was good, but they have turned out to be much worse than originally expected. For the sake of throw-away convenience, we are continuing to come up with faulty materials that are touted as good for the environment.”
Bioplastics are said to be a compostable material, meaning it can biodegrade. According to Mcphee, bioplastics can only decompose when they are in controlled laboratory conditions, and not naturally like how most people are lead to believe.
“Although bioplastic are not petroleum-based, they are not better for the environment at this point than regular plastics. They cannot be recycled, and they do not compost in industrial facilities. The technology is still not readily available to properly compost bio-plastics and they are therefore ending up in the landfill where they will release greenhouse gases,” she said.
There will always be pros and cons with every invention. The issue with bioplastics is the idea of the “throw-away” mentality it encourages.
“Companies are misleading the public into believing they are doing something good for the environment, while promoting a disposable culture increasing the demand for these items to increase profit,” said Mcphee.
