Revealing the intersectoral material flow of plastic containers and packaging in Japan

Global discharge of microplastics from mechanical recycling of plastic waste

The increasing production of plastic products and generation of plastic waste have had increasingly negative environmental impacts. Although recycling could reduce plastic pollution, microplastics can be generated during the process of crushing plastic products during mechanical recycling. We conducted crushing tests with 13 different plastics and documented the size distribution of particles generated. We then estimated the discharge of microplastics associated with recycling and their removal in wastewater treatment plants. We estimated that the global discharge of microplastics would increase from 0.017 Mt in 2000 to 0.749 Mt in 2060. Although mechanical recycling was estimated to account for 3.1% of the total emissions of microplastics for 2017, discharges of microplastics from plastic recycling may increase, even if plastic pollution from well-known sources decreases. Non-OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) Asia could be a major discharging region and would play a vital role in reducing discharges of microplastics. Reduction of the discharge of microplastics will require less use of plastic products and upgrading wastewater treatment in many countries.

A review on takeaway packaging waste: Types, ecological impact, and disposal route

Rapid economic growth and urbanization have led to significant changes in the world's consumption patterns. Accelerated urbanization, the spread of the mobile Internet, and the increasing pace of work globally have all contributed to the demand for the food takeaway industry. The rapid development of the takeaway industry inevitably brings convenience to life, and with it comes great environmental pressure from waste packaging materials. While maintaining the convenience of people's lives, further reducing the environmental pollution caused by takeaway packaging materials and promoting the recycling and reuse of takeaway packaging waste need to attract the attention and concern of the whole society. This review systematically and comprehensively introduces common takeaway food types and commonly used packaging materials, analyzes the impacts of discarded takeaway packaging materials on human health and the ecological environment, summarizes the formulation and implementation of relevant policies and regulations, proposes treatment methods and resourceful reuse pathways for discarded takeaway packaging, and also provides an outlook on the development of green takeaway packaging. Currently, only 20% of waste packaging materials are recycled worldwide, and there is still a need to develop more green takeaway packaging materials and continuously improve relevant policies and regulations to promote the sustainable development of the takeaway industry. The review is conducive to further optimizing the takeaway packaging management system, alleviating the environmental pollution problem, and providing feasible solutions and technical guidance for further optimizing takeaway food packaging materials and comprehensive utilization of resources.

Combining LCA-MFA models to identify China's plastic value chain environmental impact mitigation pathways

Characterizing material flows and environmental impacts of plastic value chain is crucial for sustainable plastic management. Here, we combine material flow analysis and life cycle assessment methods to map the flows of eight major plastics and investigate the multiple environmental impacts of China's plastic value chain. We find that packaging and textile sectors dominate plastic consumption and are responsible for the value chain environmental burdens, but with low recycling rates. Major environmental impacts are generated in plastic production and product manufacturing stages because of the consumption of coal-based feedstocks and electricity. We therefore set up six scenarios by considering carbon neutrality energy pathway, plastic recycling improvement, and technology updating, finding that the value chain environmental impact can be reduced by 14%-57% in 2060 under combined scenario. Particularly, carbon neutrality renewable energy pathway plays an important role. These findings provide valuable insights to identify key mitigation pathways for plastic value chain.

Differences in microplastic degradation in the atmosphere and coastal water environment from two island nations: Japan and New Zealand

Microplastics are subject to environmental forces that can change polymer organization on a molecular scale. However, it is not clear to what extent these changes occur in the environment and whether microplastics in the atmospheric and water environment differ. Here we identify structural differences between microplastics in the atmosphere and water environment from Japan and New Zealand, representing two archipelagos differing in their proximity to nearby countries and highly populated areas. We first highlight the propensity for smaller microplastics to arrive via air masses from the Asian continent to the Japan Sea coastal area, while New Zealand received larger, locally derived microplastics. Analyses of polyethylene in the Japanese atmosphere indicate that microplastics transported to the Japanese coastal areas were more crystalline than polyethylene particles in the water, suggesting that the plastics arriving by air were relatively more aged and brittle. By contrast, polypropylene particles in New Zealand waters were more degraded than the microplastic particles in the air. Due to the lack of abundance, both polyethylene and polypropylene could not be analyzed for both countries. Nevertheless, these findings show the structural variation in microplastics between environments in markedly different real-world locations, with implications for the toxic potential of these particles.

Threading-the-Needle: Compatibilization of HDPE/iPP blends with butadiene-derived polyolefin block copolymers

Management of the plastic industry is a momentous challenge, one that pits enormous societal benefits against an accumulating reservoir of nearly indestructible waste. A promising strategy for recycling polyethylene (PE) and isotactic polypropylene (iPP), constituting roughly half the plastic produced annually worldwide, is melt blending for reformulation into useful products. Unfortunately, such blends are generally brittle and useless due to phase separation and mechanically weak domain interfaces. Recent studies have shown that addition of small amounts of semicrystalline PE-iPP block copolymers (ca. 1 wt%) to mixtures of these polyolefins results in ductility comparable to the pure materials. However, current methods for producing such additives rely on expensive reagents, prohibitively impacting the cost of recycling these inexpensive commodity plastics. Here, we describe an alternative strategy that exploits anionic polymerization of butadiene into block copolymers, with subsequent catalytic hydrogenation, yielding E and X blocks that are individually melt miscible with PE and iPP, where E and X are poly(ethylene-ran-ethylethylene) random copolymers with 6 wt% and 90 wt% ethylethylene repeat units, respectively. Cooling melt blended mixtures of PE and iPP containing 1 wt% of the triblock copolymer EXE of appropriate molecular weight, results in mechanical properties competitive with the component plastics. Blend toughness is obtained through interfacial topological entanglements of the amorphous X polymer and semicrystalline iPP, along with anchoring of the E blocks through cocrystallization with the PE homopolymer. Significantly, EXE can be inexpensively produced using currently practiced industrial scale polymerization methods, offering a practical approach to recycling the world's top two plastics.

Effects of Circularity Interventions in the European Plastic Packaging Sector

Low levels of plastics circularity today reflect major challenges for the sector to reduce environmental impacts and a need for wider systemic change. In this work, we investigated the potential for climate and socioeconomic benefits of circular economy (CE) interventions in the plastic packaging system. By means of a mixed-unit input-output (IO) model, we performed a comparative scenario analysis for the development of demand and waste management up to 2030 within the EU-28 (EU27 + United Kingdom). We modeled the development of material flows and assessed the effects of both demand-side and end-of-life interventions. Different levels of ambition toward 2030 based on EU circular economy strategies were tested. Results showed that on reaching high levels of circularity, between 14 and 22 Mt CO₂-eq/year could be reduced by 2030 (20-30% of the total sector impact in 2018) compared to business-as-usual. Demand change (e.g., by decreasing product packaging intensities) showed similar emission-saving potential as achieving the current recycling target of 55%, which emphasizes the role of demand-side actions. Most scenarios displayed moderate employment gains and potential economic losses, pertaining to both direct and indirect activity shifts in the economy. While considering model limitations, the approach is useful in indicating potential first-order effects of system changes.

Towards sustainability through the circular economy of plastic packaging waste management in Rayong Province, Thailand

The circularity of plastic packaging waste (PPW) material via recycling is critical to its circular economy towards sustainability and carbon neutrality of society. The multi-stakeholders and complex waste recycling loop of Rayong Province, Thailand, is herein analysed using an actor-network theory to identify key actors, roles, and responsibilities in the recycling scheme. The results depict the relative function of three-actor networks, namely policy, economy, and societal networks, which play different roles in PPW handling from its generation through various separations from municipal solid wastes to recycling. The policy network comprises mainly national authorities and committees responsible for targeting and policymaking for local implementation, while economic networks are formal and informal actors acting for PPW collection with a recycling contribution of 11.3-64.1%. A societal network supports this collaboration for knowledge, technology, or funds. Two waste recycling models are classified as community-based and municipality-based management, which functions differently by coverage areas, capabilities, and process efficiency. The economic reliability of each informal sorting activity is a crucial factor for sustainability, while empowering people in environmental awareness and sorting ability at the household level is also essential, as well as law enforcement that is effective in the long-term circularity of the PPW economy.

Flow and stock accumulation of plastics in China: Patterns and drivers

Plastic pollution has always been a hot issue of global concern. Previous studies have mainly focused on the flow of plastics. However, information on the patterns and characteristics of flow, stock, and waste in the plastic life cycle and their driving factors is limited in China, and effective waste reduction and sustainable strategies are missing. Therefore, this research established a flow model of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET); further analyzed the driving factors; and proposed strategies for waste reduction and sustainable development. We found that the total consumption, stock, and waste of PET, PE, and PP in 2010-2017 reached 552.96, 292.70, and 257.18 Tg, respectively. Building and construction (B&C), packaging, and textiles were the sectors with the largest stock of PE, PP, and PET. From 2010 to 2013, the stock of PE increased by 440 %, which was mainly driven by the increase in material utilization intensity (MUI). Similarly, the growth of MUI was the main driving factor driving PP (351 %) and PET (367 %) stocks. Notably, from 2014 to 2017, economic growth was the main factor driving the plastic stock. These results will provide a scientific basis for promoting the sustainable utilization of PE, PP, and PET and be of great significance to achieve the strategic goal of a no-waste city.

Improved science-based transformation pathways for the development of safe and sustainable plastics

Projected plastic production volumes are rising, as is societal and political attention to plastic pollution and possible health impacts. In line with ambitions for climate mitigation and the circular economy, various national and international policies and action plans address the reduction of impacts of plastics. Quantitative scenario analyses show that even if current ambitious targets to reduce plastics are achieved, plastics will remain a source of millions of tons of environmental pollution annually. To achieve a sustainable transformation of the global plastics economy, 'extraordinary effort' and 'coordinated global action' beyond current ambitions are needed. While mapping knowledge gaps for the effects of micro and nano plastics (MNP) is crucial, mapping alone is not enough to achieve the needed transition. In this communication, we propose a scope for the exploration of societal transformation pathways to safe and sustainable plastics. To see which efforts are needed globally we need to advance in the following three areas: (i) embedding risk assessment methodologies in wider cost-benefit and life cycle analyses; (ii) using safe-and-sustainable design strategies that include alternative solutions and look at multiple life cycles, and (iii) reflecting on the societal transformation pathways with stakeholders by using co-created quantitative models. We believe that these practices are crucial in the coming decade to realise the extraordinary effort of defining safe and sustainable plastics.

Climate Change Implications of Bio-Based and Marine-Biodegradable Plastic: Evidence from Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyhexanoate)

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyhexanoate), PHBH or PHBHHx, is a novel bio-based polymer that is biodegradable in both soil and marine environments. While bio-based and biodegradability are often celebrated features to mitigate environmental problems of plastics, their life cycle environmental impacts contain uncertainties that are yet to be fully understood. To develop effective introduction schemes for PHBH, this study assessed the life cycle climate change implications of PHBH. We computed the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and fossil resource consumption of produce bags and spoons composed of PHBH and their fossil-based alternatives based on industrial-scale data. The products were assessed against 10 end-of-life scenarios for commercial plastics. As a result, the cradle-to-gate GHG of PHBH ranged between 0.32 and 16.5 kgCO2e/kg-PHBH depending on the land-use change assumed for the biomass production. The product-based comparative analysis presented that PHBH spoons have lower cradle-to-grave GHG emissions over their fossil-based alternatives but not with produce bags because PHBH spoons have a smaller GHG per functional unit than that of its fossil counterpart. The end-of-life scenario analysis conveyed that PHBH should be introduced to a region with a plastic waste management system that avoids methane generation and facilitates energy recovery.

Green Packaging from Consumer and Business Perspectives

Sustainable development is a global objective that aims to address the societal challenge of climate action, the environment, resource efficiency, and raw materials. In this sense, an important strategy is the promotion of green packaging, that is, the use of sustainable materials and designs for the packaging of goods. In recent years, many research works have been published in the specialised area covering the different perspectives and dimensions of green packaging. However, to our knowledge, no previous investigations have analysed the research activity on green packaging from business and consumer perspectives. The present study intends to fill this gap by analysing all of the publications found in the Scopus database with the help of visual analytic tools, including word clouds and Gephi network visualization software. More specifically, our study analyses the impact of green packaging from business and consumer viewpoints, including some specific issues such as the design and materials used in green packaging, green packaging costs, marketing strategies and corporate social responsibility related to green packaging, and the impact of green packaging in waste management, the circular economy, logistics, and supply chain management. The results obtained reveal the growing interest of scholars and researchers in all of these dimensions, as is made patently clear by the increasing number of journal publications in recent years. The practical implications of this study are significant, given the growing awareness among companies and consumers about the importance of the promotion of sustainable development through green packaging alternatives. More specifically, the results of this research could be very useful for all of those agents who are interested in learning about the main lines of research being developed in the field of green packaging.

Tracking the Product Origins of Waste for Treatment Using the WIO Data Developed by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment

Almost any production and consumption activity generates waste directly or indirectly over its supply chain. This paper is concerned with identifying the product origins of waste or waste footprint of products. It uses the waste input-output (WIO) data recently developed and published by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment (MOE), which is, to date, one of the publicly available WIO data with the highest resolution in products and waste. Results show that footprint calculation can identify factors behind the waste flows that otherwise would not be recognizable. The amount of waste for landfill is smaller than that for incineration only because around 80% of potential waste for landfill, mostly construction waste, is absorbed by recycling, attributed to public capital formation. Without this massive demand for recycling, the amount of waste sent to landfill would have been five to six times larger than the actual one, exceeding incineration. Footprint analysis of plastic waste reveals that targeting only postconsumer plastics waste is misleading, because most plastics waste has its origins in production. Service industries are found to be a major contributor to waste incineration and landfill in terms of footprint, whereas their contribution is minor in direct discharge.