PHA certainly appears to be better than PLA and other fiber based bioplastics, however the entire carbon lifecycle must be studied. Unfortunately, the heavy manufacturing of bioplastics results in only slightly less upstream carbon emissions than petroleum based plastics.
Then the question is: are bioplastics like these bad for the environment the way plastic is? Do unbiodegraded PHA forks in compost release the kinds of chemicals plastics do? Do they physically cause havoc to life as microplastic does? If not, it’s still a huge improvement. That used PHA fork might be an eyesore, but maybe it’s not a significant environmental threat.
PHA certainly appears to be better than PLA and other fiber based bioplastics, however the entire carbon lifecycle must be studied. Unfortunately, the heavy manufacturing of bioplastics results in only slightly less upstream carbon emissions than petroleum based plastics.
Then the question is: are bioplastics like these bad for the environment the way plastic is? Do unbiodegraded PHA forks in compost release the kinds of chemicals plastics do? Do they physically cause havoc to life as microplastic does? If not, it’s still a huge improvement. That used PHA fork might be an eyesore, but maybe it’s not a significant environmental threat.
Not much new here. Chemical reaction rates are a function of temperature & biodegradation is a function of organism population.