Towards environmental sustainability through the production of tailored bioplastics.
Giosafatto CVL, Porta R
Bioplastics
Microplastics now found in soil, water, and food are entering your garden, your vegetables, and ultimately your body — and bioplastics made from plant-based sources could help stop that cycle.
Regular plastics never truly disappear — they just break into tiny invisible pieces that end up everywhere, from ocean fish to the soil in your backyard. Scientists are working on a new generation of plastics made from plants and other natural materials that actually decompose without leaving harmful residue. This article introduces a collection of studies exploring how to make these plant-based plastics work well enough to replace the harmful ones we use every day.
Key Findings
Conventional plastics can take centuries to fully degrade, instead fragmenting into micro- and nanoplastics now detected in oceans, rivers, soil, atmosphere, drinking water, food, and animal tissues.
Millions of tons of plastic enter the oceans each year, forming massive debris patches that injure or kill birds, turtles, fish, and marine mammals through ingestion and entanglement.
A special journal issue presents five review articles on producing, characterizing, and biodegrading novel bioplastics from diverse renewable sources as a path toward reducing plastic pollution.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Plastic pollution from fossil fuels is harming ecosystems and human health worldwide, and scientists are racing to develop bioplastics — materials made from renewable, natural sources that break down safely in the environment.
Abstract Preview
Plastic pollution from fossil fuel-derived materials has become a pressing environmental and public health issue, driving urgent demand for sustainable alternatives. Conventional plastics can take ...
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Microplastics breaking down in your garden soil are quietly strangling the beneficial fungi that help your vegetables absorb phosphorus and other nutrients, ...
Pollution reduction in plant science refers to the use of plants and plant-based systems to mitigate environmental contaminants, including heavy metals, volatile organic compounds, and excess nutrients in soil and water. Plants possess unique physiological mechanisms—such as phytoremediation, where
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