The identification of plastic-eating fungi and bacteria in salt marshes near the Chinese coast by an international team of researchers opens up new opportunities for the management of global waste.
Researchers from China and the UK collected samples of microorganisms in May 2021 from China’s Dafeng, a UNESCO-protected location close to the Yellow Sea shore.
“A total of 184 fungal and 55 bacterial strains capable of breaking down” various plastics were found in the Jiangsu province of eastern China, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, London said in a statement.
They found a distinct “terrestrial plastisphere”, described as a “man-made ecological niche”, which is an ecosystem that has evolved to live with the presence of coastal plastic debris.
“Scientists are increasingly looking at microorganisms, such as fungi and bacteria, to help tackle some of the most pressing challenges of the modern age, including the rising tide of plastic pollution,” Kew Gardens said.
With 436 species of fungus and bacteria already known to be capable of degrading plastic, the latest results add to previous research on microorganisms that break down plastic, it stated.
A recent assessment from the United Nations Environment Programme estimates that 238 million metric tonnes of garbage from short-lived plastics, such as packaging that ends up in municipal waste, were produced globally in 2020.
About half of that was improperly managed, such as being burnt or thrown into the environment.
Representatives from close to 200 nations will gather in Paris later this month for a fresh round of talks in an effort to secure a binding deal to stop plastic pollution by the end of the year.
Researchers from Kew think their most recent findings may pave the way for the creation of powerful enzymes that are intended to naturally digest plastic garbage.