In this interview, we explore Symphony Environmental Technologies' essential role in advancing biodegradable plastics through its partnerships with the Biodegradable Plastics Association (BPA) and various standards organizations. As a leader in oxo-biodegradable technology, Symphony’s collaborations are key to improving global understanding and standardization of biodegradable plastics—an important step in addressing plastic pollution. We discuss how these partnerships help ensure products meet stringent standards like ASTM D6954 while also driving broader adoption and environmental benefits.
Symphony Environmental Technologies is a founding member of the Biodegradable Plastics Association and actively participates in the Committee work of several standards organizations. What role do these partnerships play in advancing the adoption of biodegradable plastics?
The BPA encourages a greater understanding of oxo-biodegradable plastic technology and how it can protect the environment for future generations. Its website has now become a valuable resource for anyone researching the subject.
Standards organizations such as ASTM publish laboratory test methods devised by scientists that simulate conditions likely to be experienced by plastic products in the open environment. ASTM D6954 has been explained by one of its authors to the UK Government.
Oxo-biodegradable plastic products must be tested according to this standard or an equivalent standard to ensure they have been correctly made and will perform as intended.
The BPA will certify as oxo-biodegradable and permit its logo to be used in respect of products made using a BPA-approved masterbatch and shown by reports of a BPA-approved testing institution to comply with ASTM-D6954 (or an equivalent standard for plastics) that degrade in the environment by a combination of oxidation and biodegradation.
How does d2w technology offer a solution for plastic waste that cannot be recycled or composted?
Oxo-biodegradable plastic is not designed to end up in nature, but it is the only way to prevent plastic that does get into the open environment from accumulating there for decades. It is designed to be used, re-used, recycled, and disposed of like ordinary plastic. It will biodegrade only if it escapes into the open environment deliberately or by accident at the end of its useful life.
It tackles the problem at the molecular level by ensuring that the plastic does not just break up into small pieces. It dismantles the molecular chains within the polymer so that it ceases to be plastic and becomes a biodegradable material consumed by bacteria and fungi and cleaned out of the ecosystem by them. It will also biodegrade if disposed of in landfill, though that is not its primary purpose.
D2w biodegradable technology is mandated in several Middle Eastern countries. What factors contributed to these countries' decisions to adopt this technology?
These countries were concerned with plastic waste that had escaped into their environment and had been lying or floating around for decades, creating microplastics and harming domestic animals and wildlife.
They could not ban plastic products because they were very useful to their people, especially the poorest people, so they were looking for a solution. They had heard about oxo-biodegradable technology, so they sent experts to Symphony Environmental's laboratory in the UK. Having validated the technology, they advised their governments to make it compulsory for a wide range of plastic products made from polyethylene or polypropylene, and this was done as of 2009.
Symphony Environmental Technologies has a global presence with distributors in over 70 countries. Can you elaborate on the company's international expansion strategy and key target markets?
Symphony’s d2w and d2p products help protect human health and the environment worldwide, so we decided to find companies in many countries who could be trained to understand the technologies and who were already in contact with customers who would want to use them. We are particularly active in the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia.
The European countries seem to think that they don’t need d2w but waste management in Switzerland is among the most efficient in the world. The Swiss Federal Office for the Environment has recently said “Plastics have no place in the environment. Nevertheless, around 14,000 tonnes of plastics end up in Switzerland’s soil and waters yearly – primarily due to the abrasion and decomposition of plastic products and improper disposal of plastic waste. Plastics then accumulate in the environment because they only degrade very slowly.”
That is why oxo-biodegradable plastic was invented.
Could you expand on the research conducted by the Lambton Manufacturing Innovation Centre in Canada? What were the key findings regarding microplastics generated from oxo-biodegradable plastics versus ordinary plastics?
Symphony’s scientists were confident that oxo-biodegradable plastic does not produce microplastics, and they wrote an explanatory paper about it. However, this is an important subject, and Symphony wanted to ensure their paper was correct. They, therefore, asked Lambton to review it. Lambton’s scientists confirmed that oxo-degradable plastics (i.e. ordinary plastics) create microplastics, but oxo-biodegradable plastics do not. The paper has also been examined by Jordi Labs in the United States, who said, “We reviewed the document and consider it scientifically sound. The supporting data is strong enough for the conclusion.”
What are the environmental advantages of d2w biodegradable plastic compared to conventional plastics and other alternatives like photo-degradable plastics?
Conventional plastic is very useful and is the best way to protect our food from contamination, but a significant amount of it gets into the open environment, having been littered deliberately or by accident.
Oxo-biodegradable technology addresses this problem by making the plastic biodegrade, but it can still be re-used and recycled during its useful life. Photo-degradable plastic is dependent on constant exposure to sunlight, but oxo-biodegradable plastic will continue to degrade even if it is occluded from sunlight. All it needs is oxygen and bacteria, which are ubiquitous. It does not need to be taken to a composting facility.
How does the prodegradant catalyst in the d2w masterbatch contribute to the biodegradation process? What role does sunlight play in the degradation of d2w plastic compared to conventional plastics?
Micro-organisms cannot biodegrade plastic because the molecular weight of the plastic is too high, which is why plastic persists in the environment for a very long time. Sunlight will cause conventional plastic to embrittle and fragment into microplastics, which is where most of the microplastics come from. However, the catalyst in oxo-biodegradable plastic accelerates the process of oxidation, which reduces the molecular weight by dismantling the molecular chains within the polymer and not just breaking it up into microplastics. Sunlight and heat will accelerate oxo-biodegradation, but they are not essential.
You mentioned that the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) was not convinced that oxo-biodegradable plastics create microplastics. Can you elaborate on ECHA's assessment and its implications for the industry?
In December 2017, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) asked the EU Commission to study oxo-biodegradable plastic, and they made a call-for-evidence. The BPA and many others submitted evidence, and on 30 October 2018, ECHA informed the BPA that they were not convinced that microplastics were formed. There is no Report from ECHA because the Commission terminated the study when it became apparent that their scientific experts would not agree with them about microplastics.
The implication for industry and governments is that they should pay no attention to the EU Parliament's decision to ban what it called “oxo-degradable” plastic without any report from its own experts to justify such a ban. See the BPA explanatory note.
The plastics industry has been criticized for its reliance on recycling as a solution to plastic pollution. How does Symphony Environmental Technologies' approach differ, and what message would you like to convey to the plastics industry and consumers?
There is no simple solution to plastics in the open environment. Recycling is essential, and if all the plastic could be collected for recycling, there would not be a problem. However, this is unlikely in the foreseeable future, even in the developed world.
Our message to industry and consumers is to recycle as much plastic as possible but recognize that some plastic will enter the open environment. Therefore, all short-life products made from PE or PP should be made with an oxo-biodegradable masterbatch, such as d2w, at little or no extra cost and without needing to buy new equipment or retrain the workforce."
Retailers and brand owners are not, of course, responsible for littering their products. Still, they know that it happens, and using a d2w masterbatch ensures that their products will not persist in the environment. The largest bread manufacturer in the Western world has been doing this for more than ten years.
What are the biggest barriers to widespread adoption, and how can they be overcome?
Only some people know about this technology. However, we have been aware during the last 15 years of many people writing and talking about oxo-biodegradable plastic, and have noticed the same misunderstandings being repeated time and time again.
The most fundamental misunderstanding is that oxo-biodegradable plastic products are designed to be discarded into the open environment and left to biodegrade there. They are intended to be used, re-used, recycled, and disposed of in the same way as ordinary plastic, and there is no need to label them as biodegradable. If they enter the open environment at the end of life, they will degrade and biodegrade instead of persisting there for decades."
Other misunderstandings are that oxo-biodegradable plastic:
- Is the same as oxo-degradable
- Is the source of microplastics
- Cannot be recycled
- Needs to be in special conditions to degrade/biodegrade
- Is expensive and requires special equipment.
- Cannot be certified according to international Standards
We have therefore decided to address these misunderstandings by publishing a Briefing Note on the BPA website.
Where can readers find more information?
www.d2w.net and www.biodeg.org
About Michael Laurier
Michael’s career began in his long-established family packaging business. He took over responsibility for sales and production in the mid-1970s, changing the emphasis of the business from jute products to plastic packaging. He introduced the then-innovative high-density and medium-density polythene bags to the UK market in 1975. Appointed Managing Director of Brentapac UK Plc, with continuing responsibility for national and international sales, he co-founded Symphony in 1995. It is now a public company, quoted on the London Stock Exchange.
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