Biodegradable Bio-Based Plastics Toward Climate Change Mitigation

Summary

Researchers reviewed the development and applications of biodegradable, bio-based plastics — including PLA, PHA, and starch-based materials — as replacements for fossil-fuel-derived polyethylene, polypropylene, and PET in the context of climate change mitigation and plastic pollution reduction. Transitioning to genuinely biodegradable plastics could substantially reduce the long-term accumulation of persistent microplastic particles that degrade as conventional plastics fragment over decades to centuries.