Plastics are synthetic polymers derived from fossil oil and largely resistant to biodegradation. Polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) represent ∼92% of total plastic production. PE is largely utilized in packaging, representing ∼40% of total demand for plastic products with over a trillion plastic bags used every year. Plastic production has increased exponentially in the past 50 years. In the 27 EU countries plus Norway and Switzerland up to 38% of plastic is discarded in landfills, with the rest utilized for recycling (26%) and energy recovery (36%) via combustion, carrying a heavy environmental impact. Therefore, new solutions for plastic degradation are urgently needed. We report the fast bio-degradation of PE by larvae of the wax moth Galleria mellonella, producing ethylene glycol.
Original Source [2]
Links:
[1] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/feature-article/polyethylene-bio-degradation-caterpillars-wax-moth-galleria-mellonella
[2] http://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(17)30231-2
[3] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/paolo-bombelli
[4] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/christopher-j-howe
[5] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/federica-bertocchini-et-al
[6] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/journal/current-biology
[7] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/plastics
[8] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/non-biodegradable-waste-0
[9] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/research
[10] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/waste-conversion