After some laboratory experiments, it was discovered that a certain species of bacterium marine life, known as Rhodococcus ruber, can slowly decompose and digest plastic waste made from polyethylene (PE). We will talk more about this discovery below.
Microbes that feed on polymers
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Pollution from plastic materials is increasing, the proof of which is that every year, more than 8 million tons of synthetic polymers are found in the sea, moreover, a significant part of which cannot be easily accounted for.
Many of these polymers are not accounted for because they end up disappearing, and some experts suspect that this is due to microbes that end up feeding on these residues.
What microbes are these?
The researchers suspect that bacteria present in the ocean, called Rhodococcus ruber, have the power to decompose and digest Polyethylene plastic. And that's why, the new study claims that these bacteria are responsible for the disappearance of some plastic waste.
Polyethylene is a big problem for the environment, after all, because it is widely used to serve as packaging, its waste is spread all over the world. However, in previous research, it was already possible to perceive that the decomposition of these plastics was happening much faster than usual and now they could see, that the microbes were the responsible for that.
Microbial ecologist Maaike Goudriaan of the Royal Netherlands Institute for Marine Research (NIOZ) said: "This is the first time we have demonstrated that bacteria actually digest plastic into carbon dioxide and other molecules”.
But the news may not be as good as it seems.
Although it is an urgent need to solve the problem of polymer decomposition in the environment, and these microorganisms presented themselves as a possibility, scientists claim that placing them in certain environments with the purpose of decomposing plastics, can create giant ecosystems, which can bring some harm still unknown to the planet.
Therefore, the best way to solve the problem of plastic in the environment is still the reduction of its use.
