Bio-Plastics Can Damage the Environment and Add to Food Crisis
Published: 2 May 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability
According to the London “Guardian,” bio-plastics, dubbed “sustainable” by some, can actually damage the environment, as the corn-based material allegedly emits climate change gas in landfills and adds to the food crisis by taking over large areas of land previously used to grow crops for human consumption. Such bio-plastic packaging reportedly barely breaks down in landfill sites, according to the Guardian, and can only be composted in the handful of anaerobic digesters which exist in Britain, but which do not take any packaging. Recycling companies reportedly would have to invest in expensive new equipment to extract bio-plastic packaging from waste for recycling.