Why is it in news?
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Bioplastics often promoted as a climate-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics may lead to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions, according to a study.
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An increased consumption of bioplastics in the following years is likely to generate increased greenhouse gas emissions from cropland expansion on a global scale.
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Plastics are usually made from petroleum with the associated impacts in terms of fossil fuel depletion but also climate change.
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It is estimated that by 2050 plastics could already be responsible for 15% of the global CO2 emissions.
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Bioplastics, on the other hand, are in principle climate-neutral since they are based on renewable raw materials such as maize, wheat or sugar cane.
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These plants get the CO2 that they need from the air through their leaves
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Producing bioplastics therefore consumes CO2 which compensates for the amount that is later released at end-of-life.
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Overall, their net greenhouse gas balance is assumed to be zero.
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Bioplastics are thus often consumed as an environmentally friendly alternative.
About research
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Experience with biofuels has shown that this effect is not a theoretical speculation.
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The increasing demand for the “green” energy sources has brought massive deforestation to some countries across the tropics.
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They simulated the effects of an increased demand for bioplastics in major producing countries.
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They used and extended a computer model that had already been used to calculate the impacts of biofuel policies.
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It is based on a database that depicts the entire world economy.
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The study found that it takes a lot of time for the switch to bioplastics to pay off.
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The belief that bioplastics will reduce the amount of waste in the oceans may not even come true.
Source
The Hindu