A team at the University of Texas have created an enzyme that can break down plastic in just hours instead of the centuries it takes in landfills. They posted a video of it dissolving an entire plastic tray in about two days.
Do you recycle? Recycling is the most obvious way to cut down on plastic waste. But globally, less than 10% of all plastic has been recycled. The most common method for disposing of plastic, besides throwing it in a landfill, is to burn it, which is costly, energy-intensive and spews noxious gas into the air.
This is absolutely a better option in my opinion.
Up next, the team plans to work on scaling up enzyme production to prepare for industrial and environmental application.
The team is looking at a number of ways to get the enzymes out into the field to clean up polluted sites in real life!