Many plastic items have debuted in recent years that claim to be biodegradable, bioplastic, or compostable. However, studies have shown that these plastics don’t always degrade, meaning manufacturers mislead the public by using those terms. To fix this problem, the UK government called for experts last year to help it develop a standard for such plastics.
The result: Britain’s first standard for biodegradable plastic – called the PAS 9017 standard (titled Biodegradation of polyolefins in an open-air terrestrial environment) – was published by the British Standards Institution this year. Scientists say it will cut through the jungle of confusing classifications that may or may not hold merit.
Polyolefins are a family of thermoplastics that includes polypropylene and polyethylene, responsible for 50% of all plastic pollution. They are widely used to make fruit and vegetable packaging, carrier bags, and drink bottles.
ULMA Packaging UK’s Sales Director, Ed Williams, said:
While great strides are being taken educating the consumer on what constitutes sustainable and recyclable packaging, the fact remains that classifications around sustainable packaging could be clearer. As such, this latest move to standardize degradable materials is something to be welcomed.
The standard requires plastics claiming to be biodegradable to prove they can break down into harmless wax (organic matter and carbon dioxide) that contains no microplastics. The material should decompose in the open air within two years to receive certification as biodegradable.
The specification states that 90% of the organic carbon contained in the plastic has to convert into CO2 within 730 days. However, it only applies to land-based plastic pollution as plastics behave differently in different environments. A separate specification will likely have to be developed for marine-based biodegradable plastic pollution.
The benchmark was founded and sponsored by Polymateria – a British company that has created a formula that transforms plastic items into sludge at a specific moment in the product’s life. The additive that allows fossil-fuel plastics to biodegrade can be used to make food films and cartons. By ‘fossil-fuel plastics,’ they mean thermoplastics, which are highly resistant to degradation.
Polymateria CEO Niall Dunne told Dezeen:
Our technology is designed to have multiple triggers to ensure activation rather than just one. Thus time, UV light, temperature, humidity, and air will all play a role in different stages to engage with the technology to chemical transform the plastic into a biocompatible material.
Independent third-party laboratory testing has shown we achieve 100 percent biodegradation on a rigid plastic container in 336 days and film material in 226 days in real-world conditions, leaving zero microplastics behind or causing any environmental harm in the process.
Chris Wallis, Polymateria’s vice-president of innovation, added:
If any of these systems fail, if there are leaks into the environment because of unmanaged waste, we finally have a solution. We want to be complementary and part of multiple solutions that will reduce plastic pollution on the planet. If plastic waste is not disposed of correctly or if waste management system ends up leaking the plastic into the natural environment, this technology is designed to kick in to operate and turn the material into harmless waxes chemically.
If a product is certified, it will contain a precise recycling-by date to inform consumers when they have to dispose of the item before it starts breaking down.
