Through EU Directive 2019/904 Article 5, there is a restriction on products made from oxo-degadable plasticcs being placed on the market in the EU. Although oxo-biodegradable plastics are fundamentally different by virtue of their ability to biodegrade, they are nevertheless included in the blanket restriction. A case (T-745/20) challenging the […]
FAQ Category: EU Restriction
6 posts
Upon completion of biodegradation in the open environment, oxo-biodegradable plastics, such as TDPA™ plastic, do not accumulate micro-plastics, instead biodegrading into carbon dioxide, water and biomass. Emeritus Professor Emo Chiellini, a scientist internationally-renowned for his expertise in polymer stabilization and degradation, has comprehensively reviewed the scientific evidence and has concluded that oxo-biodegradable […]
The bioplastics industry frequently misrepresents oxo-biodegradable technology as ‘oxo-degradable’, implying that they only fragment rather than biodegrade, because they do not meet the composting standards, ASTM D6400 and EN13432 (which they use as surrogate standards for biodegradation). Conveniently omitted is the fact that these composting standards are only relevant to […]
The restriction of ‘oxo-degradable’ plastics by Article 5 of the EU Directive 2019/904 was hastily introduced, and contravened due process (i.e. REACH Regulation 2006/1907). Indeed, it is not based on scientific evidence since a study of the environmental impact of oxo-degradable plastics by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) was prematurely […]
Oxo-biodegradable plastics, such TDPA™ plastics, undergo both degradation and biodegradation in the open environment. Upon completion of biodegradation, TDPA™ plastics do not accumulate micro-plastics, instead forming carbon dioxide, water and biomass. It is understood that ECHA had not found evidence of micro-plastics formation from oxo-degradable plastics when their study was prematurely terminated. Moreover, a 2017 […]
Microplastics are defined by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as plastic particles smaller than 5mm. The European Chemical Agency (ECHA) further describe microplastics as being resistant to biodegradation and consequently, having a tendency to accumulate in the (marine) environment. ECHA is concerned that safe thresholds for microplastics have yet to […]