Earth Day 2021 Series Day 4: Biobased Products and Bioplastics

by Nathália Fernandes Pimentel* (Advanced Biofuels USA) When we think about green transitioning, the most popular images we idealize are windmills, solar panels or electric cars. But apart from energy, many products still have a large impact on carbon emissions because they are made from fossil carbon using petroleum or natural gas.

Because of that, bio-based products were idealized as a path towards a more sustainable economy, lowering the dependence several industrial sectors have on fossil fuels. Bio-based products are completely or partly derived from biological materials and have the potential to diminish the emissions of CO², as well as lower toxicity and promote innovative functions.

Especially when we think about materials which are derived from fossil fuels, bio-based products can be an important part in promoting a green economy. According to projections from the European Commission, implementing bio-based products could help mitigate up to 2.5 million tons of CO² early until 2030 only in the European Union.

The category of bioplastics includes several materials with different applications and characteristics. However, bioplastics could be defined as biobased and/or biodegradable plastics.

The first definition, biobased, describes bioplastics as products manufactured entirely or partially from renewable biomass sources. The most common examples of sources are sugarcane, corn and cellulose. Apart from that, some bioplastics also are biodegradable or compostable, depending on the conditions they are subjected to.

According to the World Bank, in 2016, 242 million tons of plastic waste were generated. In 2017, Plastics Europe estimated this consumption in 348 million. It is alarming that a great part of this material is not recycled nor disposed of in the proper manner.

Thus, as plastics take decades to thousands of years to decompose, it has brought several environmental and sanitary issues in the last few decades, including the endangerment of marine wildlife. Furthermore, conventional plastics are produced from fossil fuels, polluting the environment and emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere in the process.

And a great example is Braskem bioplastics production. As one of the major plastics manufacturers worldwide, Braskem has been increasing its production of biopolymers since 2010 in the attempt to promote a greener economy. Produced from sugarcane, the “I’m Green” Braskem bioplastics mitigates CO² emissions and greenhouse effects, as well as maintains the functions and quality of conventional plastics. Since 2018, after a major investment in these products, Braskem has become the main manufacturer of 100% renewable bioplastics worldwide.

With such possibilities, bioplastics production will tend to ascend, as policies towards a green economy are implemented.

In order to increase the demand on bioplastics, we need to raise awareness among the citizens. A great first step is to understand more about the topic with our Just a Minute Video “Waste Carbon to Renewable Chemicals for a Circular Economy” available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJxshgWQENM. Sharing this kind of content can help us democratize this knowledge.

Secondly, you may demand regulations and policies from local decision makers, promoting biobased products.

Also, considering the importance of research on developing technologies that could decrease production costs, we should also call for investments on those areas. Such actions are synthesized in the image above¹.

1 Döhler, Niklas; Wellenreuther, Claudia; Wolf, André (2020) : Market
dynamics of biodegradable bio-based plastics: Projections and linkages to European policies,
HWWI Research Paper, No. 193, Hamburgisches WeltWirtschaftsInstitut (HWWI), Hamburg

*By Nathália Fernandes Pimentel, undergraduate student at Federal University of Goiás, majoring in International Relations. Also a volunteer at Advanced Biofuels USA and Intern at the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ - German Cooperation Agency) in Brazil, building her path towards a career in circular economy policies and international cooperation.