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Biodegradable plastics in the marine environment: a potential source of risk?
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This review examines whether biodegradable plastics offer a genuine solution to marine plastic pollution, finding that their environmental behavior depends heavily on specific conditions and that they may still pose risks in marine environments where decomposition is slow.
The marine environment is facing the threat of increasing plastic pollution, especially from disposable plastics. Presently, governments worldwide are promoting policies to restrict or prohibit conventional plastics. As one hopeful alternative to conventional disposable/non-durable plastics, biodegradable plastics have attracted much attention and controversy in terms of their definition, environmental impact, and environmental significance, as they may be widely used. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the facts about biodegradable plastics, understand the current knowledge gaps, and identify promising fields of relevant research. This review briefly introduces some common biodegradable plastics, their mechanisms of biodegradation, indicators for the biodegradation process, and factors concerning biodegradability and summarizes studies on the biodegradation of biodegradable plastics in the marine environment. The lifespan of biodegradable plastics varies greatly due to their compositions/properties as well as significant differences in the marine environment. Then, the potential risks of biodegradable plastics, including the release of pollutants (micro/nanoplastics, degradation products, and additives), adsorption-desorption of pollutants (pesticide, etc.), and their impact on biomes and biogeochemical cycles are discussed, fully revealing their possible impacts on the marine environment. It is believed that, in addition to the waste of resources, a high abundance of microplastics, toxic leachates, and complex effects on habitats and the environment may also cause problems for the marine environment as a result of the widespread and inappropriate use of biodegradable plastics. Based on the discussion, some constructive suggestions on how to use biodegradable plastics reasonably and prudently in the future are put forward.
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This review examines whether biodegradable plastics are a viable solution to global plastic pollution and finds the answer is complicated. Researchers note that most biodegradable plastics require specific environmental conditions to break down and cannot yet replace most conventional plastics. The study concludes that while biodegradable plastics may be part of the solution, they should not be seen as a free pass for continued overconsumption, since littering behavior does not change simply because a material is labeled biodegradable.
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Researchers evaluated the marine degradability of multiple bioplastic materials at natural seawater temperatures, finding that most bioplastics persist in ocean environments rather than degrading quickly, challenging assumptions that bioplastics represent a straightforward solution to marine plastic pollution.
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