Mar 2 2009
A biodegradable plastic that literally dissolves on contact with water saves enough energy to power Canberra and enough carbon dioxide to take 140,000 compact cars off the road during the Easter period.
A recent environmental study carried out by Melbourne’s RMIT University found that a biodegradable plastic, developed by an Australian company based in Melbourne, Plantic Technologies Limited, saves up to 2.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with conventional plastics. This is equivalent to the average annual emissions of a compact car and the amount of energy to annually power 2.5 average Australian homes.
With Easter fast approaching, it is estimated that Easter eggs generate about 3000 tonnes of waste each year. If all of these eggs were packaged in Plantic material, enough energy would be saved to power 350,000 homes for the Easter period, which is effectively all of the houses in Canberra. It would also save enough carbon to take 140,000 cars off the road in that period.
Considered an advance in plastic manufacturing, Plantic’s® biodegradable plastic is made from corn starch allowing it to rapidly dissolve in water. The biodegradable plastic can be used as everyday backyard compost, reducing the impact that plastic has on landfill and global warming.
Mr. Brendan Morris, chief executive officer of Plantic Technologies Limited, points out, “Plastic is made from petrochemical feed stocks. For this reason, we need to continue to invest in new ways of producing plastic that is both biodegradable and does not draw from our limited natural resources. We simply can not keep adding to the problem of global warming.” “Australia produces more than 1.3 million tonnes of plastic every year, that’s more than 71kg for every person. By replacing the traditional way of manufacturing plastic with Plantic’s technique of producing biodegradable plastic, we could drastically reduce pollution and at the same time save enough energy to power 17 million homes.”
According to the RMIT environmental study Plantic® materials are estimated to have approximately 40-70%2 less impact on global warming than traditional plastic material. Plantic’s® biodegradable plastic is commonly used to produce three-dimensional trays, such as those for biscuits and chocolate. Companies using Plantic’s® biodegradable trays include Cadbury Milk Tray chocolates, Haigh’s chocolates, Lindt & Sprungli and Byron Bay Cookie Company.