The idea of a “biodegradable” plastic suggests a material that would degrade to little or nothing over a period of time, posing less of a hazard to wildlife and the environment. This is the sort of ...

The Earth is covered in plastic—and we keep making more of it. Caitlin Saks and Arlo Pérez Esquivel join chemist Malika Jeffries-EL in her Boston University lab to explore just what it takes to break ...

Technically, it exists. But here’s what to think about when shopping. Credit...Naomi Anderson-Subryan Supported by By Hiroko Tabuchi On the face of it, biodegradable plastic is a miracle. It looks ...

Plastic bags that claim to decompose might not actually be degrading in the way you might expect. A recent study has shown that some "biodegradable" plastic bags are surviving up to three years. The ...

A pinch of polymer-munching enzymes could make biodegradable plastic packaging and forks truly compostable. With moderate heat, enzyme-laced films of the plastic disintegrated in standard compost or ...

Fossil fuel-based plastics take hundreds, if not thousands of years to biodegrade, leading to an urgent demand for biodegradable plastic alternatives. Plastics may be a villain in Earth's very own TV ...

Senior Lecturer in Sustainability and the Built Environment, University of Portsmouth Plastic pollution has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. Over 100 million ...

For more than two years, the UN member states have been trying to agree on a plastics treaty that includes globally binding measures against plastic pollution. In August, negotiations to reach an ...

Isabel Thomlinson receives funding from the EPSRC. The idea of a “biodegradable” plastic suggests a material that would degrade to little or nothing over a period of time, posing less of a hazard to ...