Plastic has revolutionised the World. Due to its low cost, versatility, ease of manufacture and water resistance, plastics are used in a huge
range of products in our every day lives. It has now almost completely replaced numerous traditional materials such as wood, stone, leather, paper, metal and glass in many of their former uses. Unfortunately, the success of plastic has now led to massive environmental concerns due to its slow decomposition rate
after being discarded.
Many different kinds of plastics exist and the rate of decomposition can depend largely on their chemical
composition.
Attempts have been made to estimate the decomposition rates of several
plastic products. The Marine Conservancy estimates that a foam plastic cup will take 50
years to break down fully, a plastic cup will take 400 years and a fishing line will take 600 years to degrade.
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| Nearly 90% of debris in the ocean is plastic. |
The recycling initative has been in place for many years now as a result of this problem, but it appears to be doing little to halt the endless plague of plastic pollution.
So what is the next step?
How about some plastic eating worms? or maybe plastic destroying bacteria will solve the crisis?
Well recently, Icelandic product design student Ari Jónsson attented the DesignMarch exhibition in Reykjavik, with an innovative and ingenius new idea. He has created a biodegradable, EDIBLE, algae-based bottle that breaks down as soon as it is empty.
It is created using a powdered form of agar, which is derived from algae. When the powder is added to water, it forms into a jelly-like material
which can be shaped and moulded. The bottle needs to contain liquid in order to keep its shape but once empty, it will immediately start to decompose.
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| The Agar Bottle's life cycle, created by Ari Jónsson. |
With hundreds of millions of tonnes of plastic being produced
globally every year, there is an urgent need to find environmentally friendly
alternatives to popular products like water bottles and coffee cups, so that huge amounts of
unrecycled waste don't end up in landfill or the ocean. This impressive idea once developed further, could very well lead on to a new era of environmentally friendly packaging.
.. Jónsson describes the taste of the bottle as resembling "seaweed jello", in case you were interested!
