Page 13 - AJWEP-v22i3

Standardising plastic terminology

compounds, it should not be classified as biodegradable, soil contamination, water pollution, or harm to marine
regardless of how quickly it disappears. Closing the life, it should not be labeled biodegradable. Materials
material loop should be the standard, ensuring that should be bioresorbable, ensuring they reintegrate into
materials are purposefully designed to degrade into nature without disrupting ecosystems.
non-toxic, bioresorbable components that benefit the The US EPA does not mandate eco-design, meaning
ecosystems. 113 manufacturers are not required to design plastics with
The EPA allows the plastic to be labeled as a sustainable end-of-life strategy. Many so-called
biodegradable, even if it requires industrial composting, biodegradable plastics are still made using fossil fuels,
incineration, or landfill conditions for degradation. contain harmful additives, or require high-energy
Many biodegradable plastics, such as PLA, require processing. If a plastic’s production process contributes
high-temperature industrial composting facilities, to environmental degradation, it should not be classified
but these facilities are not widely available. If these as biodegradable. Biodegradable plastics should be
materials end up in landfills or marine environments, intentionally designed from the start with sustainability
they persist as conventional plastics, even though they in mind. This means removing harmful additives,
are marked as biodegradable. Biodegradable material using bioresorbable materials, and ensuring complete
should not require special environmental conditions; reintegration into the environment. Closing the material
it should break down naturally where it is disposed of loop should be a regulatory requirement, ensuring that
(e.g., soil, water, and marine ecosystems). If plastic materials are biodegradable and contribute to long-
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only degrades under industrial conditions but persists in term sustainability. Eco-design should encompass
oceans and soil, it should be classified as compostable responsible sourcing, energy-efficient production, and
but not biodegradable. Environmental adaptability non-toxic degradation. Inconsistencies in definitions
must be a key criterion; biodegradable plastics should and terminologies result in policies that promote a one-
degrade effectively under diverse real-world conditions size-fits-all approach.
without human intervention.
The EPA’s vague biodegradability definitions create 7. Implications and recommendations
loopholes for deception and allow marketers to market
materials as environmentally friendly when they still Despite significant advancements in understanding
cause long-term environmental harm. For example, plastic pollution, a definitive conclusion regarding
some oxo-degradable plastics are labeled biodegradable the toxicity of plastic particles remains elusive due
because they break down into smaller fragments, but to the complexity of individual plastic materials.
these fragments persist as microplastics in soil and marine However, their ubiquitous environmental presence
environments. EPA’s definition does not distinguish poses substantial risks to critical Earth systems,
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between complete biodegradation and fragmentation, biodiversity, and ecosystem services. Addressing
allowing misleading claims that mask ongoing plastic these concerns requires the continuous refinement of
pollution. We argue that biodegradability should toxicological testing methods and the development of
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require complete mineralization, meaning that plastics novel approaches to assess the long-term environmental
should fully degrade into natural compounds (CO , and health impacts of plastic debris across different size
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water, and biomass) without persistent residues. If a categories. Given the complexity of plastic weathering,
material fragments into microplastics instead of fully which involves continuous degradation and multiple
degrading, it should not be classified as biodegradable. simultaneous processes, an interdisciplinary approach
The EPA only defines biodegradability based on is required to bridge research gaps and improve
decomposition but ignores the environmental effects hazard assessments beyond conventional toxicological
of the breakdown process. Plastics that degrade into studies.
acidic byproducts, heavy metals, or toxic residues One critical yet underexplored aspect of plastic
are still considered biodegradable under the EPA’s toxicity assessments is the role of plastic-associated
criteria. There is no requirement for the degradation chemicals, including additives, residual monomers,
process to be neutral or beneficial to the environment. and degradation by-products. These compounds
Biodegradable plastics should have a net-zero significantly contribute to the hazardous nature of
or positive environmental impact, meaning their plastics but remain poorly characterized due to their
degradation does not harm ecosystems and ideally diverse chemical compositions and the need for
enriches them. If plastic breakdown byproducts cause advanced analytical techniques. Present plastic leachate

Volume 22 Issue 3 (2025) 7 doi: 10.36922/AJWEP025200158