MEP Jackson calls on EC to support hydro and oxo-biodegradable plastics

Jackson, the former chair of the environment, public health, and food safety committee of the European Parliament and rapporteur for the EU Waste Framework Directive, said European Standards should be developed to encourage the use of both of these products.

“It is worth bearing in mind that the European Parliament is concerned by the use of scarce land and water resources around the world to produce biofuels in competition with food crops and the same concern applies to growing crops to make biodegradable plastics, so I hope the European Commission will give more positive support to oxo-bio plastics,” she said.

Hydro-biodegradable plastics are made wholly or partly from crops, which biodegrade in a highly microbial environment, such as composting.

Oxo-biodegradable plastics are made from a by-product of oil refining, which degrades in the environment by a process of oxidation initiated by an additive.

Jackson was speaking after a presentation in the European Parliament by Symphony Environmental Technologies, which produces an oxo-biodegradable additive, d2w, which is added to plastics during the manufacturing process, making them degrade completely within six months.

“European legislation on waste has tended to concentrate on waste which can be collected, and to encourage people to reduce, re-use and dispose responsibly of their waste,” said Jackson.

“However, we also need to take account of the fact that we will never succeed in collecting all the waste and that some may remain to disfigure the landscape.

“This is particularly the case with plastic waste, from errant supermarket bags to agricultural plastic. Where this goes uncollected it can accumulate in the environment, polluting the land and the oceans for many decades, and perhaps for hundreds of years.”

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