I'm sure you all have heard the things going around about plastic pollution by now, but what exactly are we as a society doing about it? other than posting pictures with a caption like “#savetheturtles” or reposting random videos that will “help save our environment” on social media, the answer is in fact that we aren’t doing much. But, while we are here doing this there are scientists working to find a solution to these problems, take this discovery I’m about to share with you for example.
My innovation is plastic eating enzymes. Plastic eating enzymes were discovered/invented by a team of researchers in Japan. The leaders of that research team are Kohei Oda and Kenji Miyamoto. This invention is currently being tested and used, and if it works well enough it will be used worldwide. This invention is currently being developed and tested at the University of Portsmouth in the U.K and the U.S Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. This innovation is necessary for us if we want to keep plastic waste from piling up and if we want to keep wildlife safe. Plastic is piling up by the minute and becoming more and more harmful, so if this discovery is tested to work, it will become a necessity.
Now, why don't I tell you a bit more about this discovery? Although this product was found by accident, there is a motivation behind it, and that is to help reduce plastic pollution. It was not created in a particular region for any specific reason, but it was discovered in Japan. The website Global Citizen says, "A team of researchers in Japan inadvertently developed an enzyme that can break down plastic in a matter of days — far faster than the hundreds of years that plastic usually takes to decompose". Julia Trevino from Smithsonian.com, "In 2016, after spending five years searching through piles of waste, Japanese researchers discovered a strain of bacteria that naturally evolved to eat away at polyethylene terephthalate, the common plastic known as PET or polyester".
I believe that this is important to the global community because plastic pollution has become an increasingly more dangerous problem and is killing wildlife as we speak, there needs to be a quick solution to this before things get out of hand. On Global Citizen website it says, "If current trends continue, 12 billion metric tons of plastic waste will exist in the world by 2050. That’s 1.6 metric tons, or the size of a midsize car, for every human on the planet". On Britannica, Charles Moore writes, "plastic pollution, accumulation in the environment of synthetic plastic products to the point where they create problems for wildlife and their habitats as well as for human populations".
This innovation will change the world for the better and help to create a safer environment for wildlife species and possibly even humans. On The Guardian, Damian Carrington says, "What we are hoping to do is use this enzyme to turn this plastic back into its original components, so we can literally recycle it back to plastic," McGeehan tells Carrington. "It means we won’t need to dig up any more oil and, fundamentally, it should reduce the amount of plastic in the environment." On Smithsonian.com, "...they are now working to shorten the time it takes the enzyme to break down plastics. Speeding up the process might allow for a legitimate large-scale use — and could mean that less plastic will make its way into the environment in the first place".
This invention could be a benefit to our world, we just need to take the time to research and learn more about it. Because at the rate we're going the earth doesn't seem to be getting any better.
My innovation is plastic eating enzymes. Plastic eating enzymes were discovered/invented by a team of researchers in Japan. The leaders of that research team are Kohei Oda and Kenji Miyamoto. This invention is currently being tested and used, and if it works well enough it will be used worldwide. This invention is currently being developed and tested at the University of Portsmouth in the U.K and the U.S Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. This innovation is necessary for us if we want to keep plastic waste from piling up and if we want to keep wildlife safe. Plastic is piling up by the minute and becoming more and more harmful, so if this discovery is tested to work, it will become a necessity.
Now, why don't I tell you a bit more about this discovery? Although this product was found by accident, there is a motivation behind it, and that is to help reduce plastic pollution. It was not created in a particular region for any specific reason, but it was discovered in Japan. The website Global Citizen says, "A team of researchers in Japan inadvertently developed an enzyme that can break down plastic in a matter of days — far faster than the hundreds of years that plastic usually takes to decompose". Julia Trevino from Smithsonian.com, "In 2016, after spending five years searching through piles of waste, Japanese researchers discovered a strain of bacteria that naturally evolved to eat away at polyethylene terephthalate, the common plastic known as PET or polyester".
I believe that this is important to the global community because plastic pollution has become an increasingly more dangerous problem and is killing wildlife as we speak, there needs to be a quick solution to this before things get out of hand. On Global Citizen website it says, "If current trends continue, 12 billion metric tons of plastic waste will exist in the world by 2050. That’s 1.6 metric tons, or the size of a midsize car, for every human on the planet". On Britannica, Charles Moore writes, "plastic pollution, accumulation in the environment of synthetic plastic products to the point where they create problems for wildlife and their habitats as well as for human populations".
This innovation will change the world for the better and help to create a safer environment for wildlife species and possibly even humans. On The Guardian, Damian Carrington says, "What we are hoping to do is use this enzyme to turn this plastic back into its original components, so we can literally recycle it back to plastic," McGeehan tells Carrington. "It means we won’t need to dig up any more oil and, fundamentally, it should reduce the amount of plastic in the environment." On Smithsonian.com, "...they are now working to shorten the time it takes the enzyme to break down plastics. Speeding up the process might allow for a legitimate large-scale use — and could mean that less plastic will make its way into the environment in the first place".
This invention could be a benefit to our world, we just need to take the time to research and learn more about it. Because at the rate we're going the earth doesn't seem to be getting any better.
MLA CITATION:
“Ideonella Sakaiensis.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Oct. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideonella_sakaiensis.
Treviño, Julissa. “This ‘Mutant Enzyme’ Breaks Down Plastic.” Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 25 Apr. 2018, www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-accidentally-create-mutant-enzyme-can-break-down-plastic-180968881/.
Moore, Charles. “Plastic Pollution in Oceans and on Land.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 12 Mar. 2019, www.britannica.com/science/plastic-pollution/Plastic-pollution-in-oceans-and-on-land.
“8 Crazy Innovations That Could Save the Planet From Climate Change.” Global Citizen, Global Citizen, 2019, www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/8-crazy-inventions-that-can-save-the-planet/.
You said "Although this product was found by accident". Did the fact that it was found by accident affect the research process? What were they initally doing when they found it?
ReplyDeleteScientists were studying a different bacteria and the structure of that when they came across this new mutant enzyme. The accidental discovery of this enzyme did not affect the research process, besides the fact that it helped them further their research on a different topic.
DeleteHow did they specifically make these enzymes? How successful have they been, and are these the best solution to fixing this problem?
ReplyDeleteI love your third paragraph by the way, it had really good information.
DeleteTo clarify, these enzymes weren't made per say, they were discovered. They came across this enzyme while researching another bacteria, and began to research. This enzyme is successful in breaking down plastic more efficiently than anything else anyone has ever seen. Although this enzyme is effective, scientists would rather suggest that we keep plastic away from our earth and oceans instead of getting to the point where we have to rely on this enzyme. So the best solution to fixing this problem is though to be general awareness and keeping plastic pollution away without this invention.
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