Introduction
Each year hundreds of millions of tons of plastics are
produced from petroleum. Most of these plastics will remain in landfills for
years & causes significant health risks to animals; however, if we see the
applications the average person's lifestyle would be impractical without them.
One solution to this conundrum lies in biodegradable polymers. Because biodegradable
polymer has the ability to breakdown or decompose back into the natural
environment without causing harm. Bio-based packaging materials introduced as a
green alternative in the past decades due to their-
v environmentally-friendly characteristics,
v vast variety and availability,
v non-toxicity, and
Green report: meaning
The term green report
refers to a positive sign. Mainly green report means a report on the situation
of a company based on information on costs and environmental indicators.
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Green report of biodegradable polymer
In the 1980s, the
response of the enterprising companies within the packaging industry to adverse
publicity was to introduce new ‘biodegradable’ packaging materials, generally
based on starch-filled polyethylene, which were claimed to ‘disappear naturally’
when exposed to the environment. Most of the ‘green’ claims made for the
materials were not supported by experimental evidence and this resulted in a
great deal of public concern, particularly in the USA. In 1990, the National
Association of Attorneys General (USA) published ‘The Green Report’, based on
the findings of a Working Party which drew together these criticisms. The
salient conclusions of ‘The Green Report’ were as follows:
1. To advertise polymers
as degradable is deceptive unless the conditions are clearly defined.
2. Degradable plastics
must be compatible with existing waste management systems.
3. Meaningful research
should be carried out into the effects of degradable plastics in the
environment.
4. Testing procedures and
protocols for degradability should be established.
The first
‘green’ criterion is the governing principle for companies
wishing to enter the degradable polymers market. To take an example, it is not
legitimate to claim biodegradability in sewage if a polymer does not substantially
mineralize during the time it is in the sewage treatment plant.
The second
‘green’ criterion applies particularly to packaging
materials whose fate may be landfill or compost but which could also find their
way into a mechanical recycling system or an incinerator. It is misleading to
claim, as some retailers do, that packaging is ‘recyclable’ if appropriate
facilities are not available to convert the wastes into useful products or
fuels.
The third
‘green’ criterion indicates that the long-term effects of
manmade materials in the environment are as important as their initial impact
as litter. The use of degradable materials in consumer products or in
agricultural waste must not lead to the generation of toxic or otherwise
environmentally unacceptable chemicals in the environment.
The fourth
‘green’ criterion has been addressed internationally by ISO,
in the USA by ASTM and in Europe by CEN.
Conclusion