A group in Australia is coming together looking to solve the plastic pollution problem or at least prevent further plastic pollution in the future. Australia's national scientific research agency, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, is teaming up with researchers from Murdoch University, among others, to develop 100% compostable plastic, according to Innovation News Network. The $8 million initiative is called the Bioplastics Innovation Hub.
The plastic problem is a big one, to say the least. There's the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, there are rivers literally full of plastic pollution in Central America, and there are microplastics everywhere you look, even in our own bodies.
The idea of compostable plastic is nothing new, but current iterations of supposedly compostable plastics have fallen short of expectations.
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The Hub plans to bring together experts in microbiology, molecular genetics, and biochemical engineering to create biologically derived plastics that will biodegrade in any environment.
Andy Whitley, a CSIRO research director, said of the Hub: "Our primary focus is the development of 100% compostable, bio-derived packaging for use as sprays, films, bottles, caps, and wrappers, which are engineered to fully break down in compost, land, and aquatic environments."
One of the first problems the Hub will look to tackle is single-use plastic water bottle pollution. The Hub will team up with Ecopha Biotech, a company with experience in creating polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) plastics, which are biodegradable plastics made using renewable sources like plant oils, sugars, starches, and wastewater. PHAs are made to biodegrade in soil and water.
This project will be specifically focused on creating compostable water bottles made from waste products in the food industry.
"Through the Bioplastics Innovation Hub," said Ecopha CEO Wilson Ling, "we are focused on developing bioplastics that will help address the plastic waste problem both in Australia and globally."
The Hub initiative is just part of Australia's goal of reducing plastic waste in the country by 80% by 2030.
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