Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation
<p>Agriculture relies heavily on the use of plastic mulch films, which increase crop yields and can lower water demands. In recent years, soil-biodegradable mulch films have been marketed to replace the non-biodegradable, conventional polyethylene-based mulch films. These biodegradable mulch f...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2023-10-01
|
| Series: | Biogeosciences |
| Online Access: | https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/20/4213/2023/bg-20-4213-2023.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797660594527010816 |
|---|---|
| author | S. van Grinsven C. Schubert C. Schubert |
| author_facet | S. van Grinsven C. Schubert C. Schubert |
| author_sort | S. van Grinsven |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>Agriculture relies heavily on the use of plastic mulch films, which increase crop yields and can lower water demands. In recent years, soil-biodegradable mulch films have been marketed to replace the non-biodegradable, conventional polyethylene-based mulch films. These biodegradable mulch films are designed to be ploughed into the soil after use to be biodegraded in situ by soil
microorganisms. However, research has shown that part of the mulch film
material may be transported from the fields to neighboring environments,
including aquatic ecosystems. Research on potential biodegradation of
soil-biodegradable plastics in freshwater habitats is lacking. Here, we
investigated the mineralization of soil-biodegradable agricultural mulch
films in freshwater lake sediments of Lake Lucerne, Switzerland. Two types
of commercial soil-biodegradable mulch films were incubated within lake
sediment cores, along with traditional polyethylene (PE) plastic, and the production of
CO<span class="inline-formula"><sub>2</sub></span> and CH<span class="inline-formula"><sub>4</sub></span> was followed over time relative to non-plastic-containing control sediments. After the 40-week incubation period, the films
were visually intact and showed no signs of mineralization. Gas analyses
showed no additional production of either CO<span class="inline-formula"><sub>2</sub></span> or CH<span class="inline-formula"><sub>4</sub></span> in the
degradable mulch film incubations, compared to the control or PE plastic
incubations. We conclude that these two used soil-biodegradable mulch films
have a low biodegradability in lake sediments, likely reflecting that the
microbial community structure in the lake sediment lacks active microbial
degraders. Our results highlight the importance of preventing transport of
soil-biodegradable mulch films from agricultural soils to surrounding
aquatic environments.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T18:33:09Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a2701b8f163147a988dd761849801a12 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1726-4170 1726-4189 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T18:33:09Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biogeosciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-a2701b8f163147a988dd761849801a122023-10-13T10:15:16ZengCopernicus PublicationsBiogeosciences1726-41701726-41892023-10-01204213422010.5194/bg-20-4213-2023Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubationS. van Grinsven0C. Schubert1C. Schubert2Department Surface Waters – Research and Management, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG), Seestrasse 79, 6047 Kastanienbaum, SwitzerlandDepartment Surface Waters – Research and Management, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG), Seestrasse 79, 6047 Kastanienbaum, SwitzerlandInstitute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich, Universitätstrasse 16, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland<p>Agriculture relies heavily on the use of plastic mulch films, which increase crop yields and can lower water demands. In recent years, soil-biodegradable mulch films have been marketed to replace the non-biodegradable, conventional polyethylene-based mulch films. These biodegradable mulch films are designed to be ploughed into the soil after use to be biodegraded in situ by soil microorganisms. However, research has shown that part of the mulch film material may be transported from the fields to neighboring environments, including aquatic ecosystems. Research on potential biodegradation of soil-biodegradable plastics in freshwater habitats is lacking. Here, we investigated the mineralization of soil-biodegradable agricultural mulch films in freshwater lake sediments of Lake Lucerne, Switzerland. Two types of commercial soil-biodegradable mulch films were incubated within lake sediment cores, along with traditional polyethylene (PE) plastic, and the production of CO<span class="inline-formula"><sub>2</sub></span> and CH<span class="inline-formula"><sub>4</sub></span> was followed over time relative to non-plastic-containing control sediments. After the 40-week incubation period, the films were visually intact and showed no signs of mineralization. Gas analyses showed no additional production of either CO<span class="inline-formula"><sub>2</sub></span> or CH<span class="inline-formula"><sub>4</sub></span> in the degradable mulch film incubations, compared to the control or PE plastic incubations. We conclude that these two used soil-biodegradable mulch films have a low biodegradability in lake sediments, likely reflecting that the microbial community structure in the lake sediment lacks active microbial degraders. Our results highlight the importance of preventing transport of soil-biodegradable mulch films from agricultural soils to surrounding aquatic environments.</p>https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/20/4213/2023/bg-20-4213-2023.pdf |
| spellingShingle | S. van Grinsven C. Schubert C. Schubert Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation Biogeosciences |
| title | Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| title_full | Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| title_fullStr | Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| title_short | Soil-biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| title_sort | soil biodegradable plastic films do not decompose in a lake sediment over 9 months of incubation |
| url | https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/20/4213/2023/bg-20-4213-2023.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT svangrinsven soilbiodegradableplasticfilmsdonotdecomposeinalakesedimentover9monthsofincubation AT cschubert soilbiodegradableplasticfilmsdonotdecomposeinalakesedimentover9monthsofincubation AT cschubert soilbiodegradableplasticfilmsdonotdecomposeinalakesedimentover9monthsofincubation |