Plastic products are difficult to fully degrade. For instance, plastic bags require 200 to 500 years to completely degrade, whether they are buried in landfills or exposed to the environment. Plastic waste is often discarded into the oceans and soil, causing long-term and deep-rooted environmental problems, such as soil contamination and significant reductions in agricultural yields. When discarded on land or in the ocean, animals may ingest plastic waste, mistaking it for food, leading to their death. Additionally, when mixed with other household waste, the non-degradable nature of plastics makes it difficult to compost other waste, leading to white pollution.
In recent years, the environmental impact of different plastic cushioning packaging materials has become a hot topic among scholars. Studies have shown that the environmental pollution caused by the processing of paper products is higher than that of plastic products. However, due to the low recycling rate of plastic products, the overall environmental impact of plastic packaging throughout its lifecycle is higher than that of paper packaging.
Current research on the lifecycle assessment of corrugated paper, expanded polystyrene (EPS), and polyethylene indicates that EPS significantly impacts land, water quality, and landscapes, contributing to white pollution. Simple incineration of EPS can also cause severe air pollution. Jill Group suggests enhancing the recycling and resource utilization of waste EPS. Thus, the recycling and reuse of foam plastics are crucial and should be a focus of future technological research. The lifecycle environmental impact assessment of foam plastics can also provide theoretical support for the government in formulating relevant recycling policies.
