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Every day we are more aware of the pollution and environmental impacts of the waste we generate daily. With the aim of reducing the contamination of this waste, biodegradable products emerged a few years ago. However, the use of biodegradable plastics is not the environmental solution that many believe, as it may help on certain occasions but it does not solve the great global garbage problem that we have. In this Green Ecologist article we explain how long it takes for biodegradable plastic to degrade and more details related to these products.
What is the process of degradation of plastic
The plastic It is a widely used material throughout the world, but also one of the ones that takes the longest to decompose. Plastic is a petroleum-derived polymer that is molded at high pressures and temperatures. Petroleum is a material that degrades at very high temperatures (specifically at 286ºC) and that generates many pollutants, in addition to the difficulty of transport, so its incineration is not viable in most countries.
The degradation of this material is a process that changes its structure and characteristics, making it more vulnerable. The oil degradation occurs between 100 to 1,000 years, depending on the size and composition of the container, in which large amounts of pollutants are emitted into the environment. Many of these materials are dumped into the environment indiscriminately and harm thousands of species, actually the entire planet.
What is biodegradable plastic and what is it for?
The biodegradable or bioplastic plastics are plastics that are manufactured using organic raw materials that are obtained from renewable sources or daily waste such as bananas, cassava, cellulose, legumes, polysaccharides, soybean oil or potato starch. These materials, being organic waste, can be degraded by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. The benefit obtained from this more biological decomposition is that products such as carbon dioxide (both beneficial and harmful to the environment), water and, in addition, other biomaterials are generated, serving as organic compost for the soil. In addition, the degradation times of the plastic are also reduced. It is also important to say that, currently, many plastics sold as biodegradable are not necessarily composed of organic materials, but of oil like conventional ones.
It is also convenient to know in which cases it is really useful and some examples of what is biodegradable plastic for:
- Bioplastic packaging: these wrappers can decompose sooner than conventional ones.
- Farming: This plastic can be mixed into the soil with layers of mulch and seed (it also has drawbacks, as we will see).
- Medicine: This plastic can be useful for the manufacture of absorbable sutures, micro-devices or capsules that degrade inside the body.
How long does normal and biodegradable plastic take to degrade?
The truth is that a plastic bag, even if it is biodegradable, also takes time to degrade. Compared to the time it takes for conventional ones, biodegradable ones (as we said, not all of those who claim to be so are) begin to degrade around 18 months (that is why they carry a manufacturing date) up to a period that goes between 1 and a half to 3 years, which is actually not a short time.
Even this degradation process is not easy, since they need special conditions, specifically the conditions must be specific in terms of microorganisms, temperature and humidity and when they are buried they can emit greenhouse gases and be more harmful to the environment than a conventional plastic.
An example, diapers made with conventional plastic can take between 300 and 400 years to degrade, since they have been made with materials derived from petroleum, while diapers made with biodegradable materials are better, but take between 3 and 6 years, which It is also time that they spend polluting the environment, although it must also be taken into account that more organisms feed on these materials than on conventional plastics.
Find out more about how long it takes for waste to degrade in this other Green Ecologist article.
conclusion
The biodegradability of plastic is highly dependent on environmental conditions (the human body acts differently than the earth in that sense). So it doesn't make much sense to make a product like biodegradable plastic bags easier to break down, when that really isn't going to solve the global waste problem. What should be done is complement it with solutions to reduce global waste.
These biodegradable plastics are useful and are also very interesting for further research, but can only be used when they are of specific benefit. To solve the problem of garbage and really help the environment, the best solution is to save energy and improve recycling processes, reuse of plastic materials or reuse cloth and cardboard or paper bags.
Here are some tips to reduce the use of plastics and packaging.
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