Plastic has been blight on landscape and deadly threat to wildlife for decades. Environmentalists have issued many pleas for us to reduce amount of plastic we use or switch to biodegradable alternatives. One solution to this problem may be at hand. Scientists have developed form of biodegradable plastic. This means that the billions of plastic bags, cups, straws and utensils that we dispose of each day could be "compostable" - they could decompose and break down as naturally as organic waste. scientists are from University of California, Berkeley. They say they have invented plastic that could break down within few weeks, rather than centuries, using just heat and water.
new, biodegradable product involves embedding polyester-eating enzymes into plastic during the production process. When these enzymes are exposed to heat and water, they eat away at plastic and reduce it to lactic acid. This provides nutrients for soil when composted. Professor Ting Xu said up to 98 per cent of plastic her team made degraded into small molecules. She said: "We are basically saying that we are on right track. We can solve this continuing problem of single-use plastics." She added: "Look at all wasted stuff we throw away - clothing, shoes, electronics like cellphones and computers. We are taking things from earth at faster rate than we can return them."
