New Zealand is portrayed as a clean, green environment, however littering will always be a problem of some sort. People believe that if we used biodegradable plastics, such as plastic bags, we could tackle the problem. Is this really better for the environment?
I think by making the products biodegradable, more people will throw away rubbish thinking that it is ok. Much like when we throw fruit such as a banana skin into a paddock without much worry. This will mean more plastics on the road sides and waterways until they eventually break down, and thats if they break down.
Biodegradable plastics require specific conditions to biodegrade properly (micro-organisims, temperature, and humidity) and if not managed properly they may be worse for the environment than conventional plastics.
We need to approach this correctly, focusing on changing peoples attitudes. The best way I believe is to improve our own behavioural patterns and concentrate on ways of recycling and recovering all plastics.
However it does have its uses. I work in the horticulture industry and we use plastic mulch to help improve our performance, keep weeds out etc in our Lettuce crops. After a three month period the mulch breaks down into different forms, such as water, carben dioxide and some bio material. We can then plough this mulch into the soil and start planting our next crop without the worry of bits of little plastic hanging around for many years. Farmers are beginning to use this biodegradable mulch with their silage wraps also.
Other useful benefits are in the medical industry, absorbable sutures, micro-devices containing medicines which could break down in the body. Food packaging that can be composted together with its contents when the product is past its use by date.
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