People discover various materials from time to time that break the boundaries of traditional materials. Plastic is a revolutionized material, and is referred to as “a material with 1,000 uses”. This review summarized up-to-date research on plastic and its waste pollution. Plastic has a domain throughout human life with its versatile properties such as lightweight, high durability, flexibility, and low production cost. This article describes the applications, benefits, production, consumption, and classifications of plastics. Plastic commercialization began with the Second World War and grew all over the world within less than a century. The global annual production of plastic is more than 359 million tons. Despite all the benefits, plastics cause severe environmental and public health issues. Accordingly, this study addresses the major issues of plastic waste on the environment and human health. Plastics can degrade into micro to nano sizes, and those fine particles are more spreadable in air, water, and soil. Therefore, both terrestrial and aquatic animals go through various negative impacts such as ingestion, entangling, ulcers, low reproduction, and oxidative stress. Microplastics also degrade human health due to cardiovascular diseases, chronic kidney disease, birth defects, cancer, etc. The closing contains the developed end-of-life options (e.g., recycling and reprocessing, incineration with energy recovery, modification reuse, value addition, and landfilling) of biodegradable and non-biodegradable plastic wastes. Several international, regional/national level legislations and policies/concepts (e.g., plastic trade, 3R policy, and circular economy) are available to manage plastic and plastic waste generation. Plastic waste management is also discussed offering practical insights and real-world scenarios. Solutions and challenges in effective plastic waste management guide to create a more sustainable and environmentally responsible approach. Finally, this review article highlights the importance of judicious decisions and the involvement of all stakeholders to overcome the plastic waste crisis. 

The world of plastic waste: a review

Plastic or microplastic pollution is a global threat affecting ecosystems, with the current generation reaching as much as 400 metric tons per/year. Soil ecosystems comprising agricultural lands act as microplastics sinks, though the impact could be unexpectedly more far-reaching. This is troubling as most plastic forms, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), formed from polymerized terephthalic acid (TPA) and ethylene glycol (EG) monomers, are non-biodegradable environmental pollutants. The current approach to use mechanical, thermal, and chemical-based treatments to reduce PET waste remains cost-prohibitive and could potentially produce toxic secondary pollutants. Thus, better remediation methods must be developed to deal with plastic pollutants in marine and terrestrial environments. Enzymatic treatments could be a plausible avenue to overcome plastic pollutants, given the near-ambient conditions under which enzymes function without the need for chemicals. The discovery of several PET hydrolases, along with further modification of the enzymes, has considerably aided efforts to improve their ability to degrade the ester bond of PET. Hence, this review emphasizes PET-degrading microbial hydrolases and their contribution to alleviating environmental microplastics. Information on the molecular and degradation mechanisms of PET is also highlighted in this review, which might be useful in the future rational engineering of PET-hydrolyzing enzymes.

/pdf/an-overview-into-polyethylene-terephthalate-pet-hydrolases-3o4qlnvn.pdf

An Overview into Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Hydrolases and Efforts in Tailoring Enzymes for Improved Plastic Degradation

The quantity of plastic materials produced worldwide is progressively increasing. For instance, annual global plastic production has increased from 1.5 to 390.7 million metric tons from 1950 to 2021. Meanwhile, inefficient management strategies have resulted in huge plastic waste disposal (i.e., in the form of macro-, micro-, and nanoplastics) in the environment in a hostile manner. In particular, such uncontrollable waste discarding paves the entrance of plastic pollution into the environment as microplastics (μPs) after the degradation of macroplastics. In this respect, marine environments are the most typical regions prone to μP pollution. These ubiquitous emerging pollutants can also adsorb other pollutants, such as organic materials, toxic heavy metal ions, and pathogens, from the environment and transfer them into living organisms. The main theme of the present study is to compile information on how μP pollution affects the marine ecosystem, with a particular emphasis on the following key factors: (i) the types and sources of μPs, particularly those entering the marine sinks; (ii) the mechanisms leading to μPs' degradation; (iii) the poisonous effects of μPs on marine biota and humans; (iv) the fate of μPs in the marine environment, including their transportation routes and deposition modes, and (v) recent developments in the characterization, separation, and removal of μPs from the marine environment. The information presented here would be practical for developing effective μPs' risk management plans. 

Microplastic pollution in the marine environment: A review

The significant impact of plastic waste on ecosystems has raised concerns regarding its detrimental effects. This review examines the various types of synthetic and degradable plastics and explores the physiochemical properties of polymers during degradation. It delves into the management of plastic waste, considering both abiotic and biotic degradation mechanisms. Biotic degradation, including aerobic and anaerobic pathways, is also examined, with a specific focus on the role of microorganisms and their enzymes in facilitating biodegradation. The review further explores the biotechnological implications of plastic waste management, including gene manipulation, genetic modification, and the potential of anaerobic biotechnology. It emphasizes the importance of transitioning toward a circular economy and highlights the alignment of these efforts with sustainable development goals (SDGs). Overall, this review provides insights into the impact of plastic waste on the environment, explores degradation mechanisms, and discusses biotechnological approaches and sustainable practices aimed at addressing the challenges posed by plastic waste. 

Plastic waste impact and biotechnology: Exploring polymer degradation, microbial role, and sustainable development implications

Plastic waste management represents a fundamental challenge in terms of environmental pollution and health in many emerging countries. Yet, some firms believe improved plastic waste management could lead to value creation and capture, especially from a circular economy perspective. This study draws on a longitudinal research approach that involved 12 organizations in assessing plastic waste management's contribution to Cameroon's circular economy. Our findings suggest that plastic waste management for value creation is still embryonic in Cameroon. Moving to the full value creation and capture stage will require overcoming various challenges identified and presented in the paper. We then discuss our findings and put forward several future research avenues.The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10479-023-05386-3. 

/pdf/assessing-the-potential-of-plastic-waste-management-in-the-2ku797ib.pdf

Assessing the potential of plastic waste management in the circular economy: a longitudinal case study in an emerging economy

http://www.cell.com/article/S2405844022012725/pdf

Sustainable plastic waste management in a circular economy

Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess the factors affecting testing behaviours amongst the population in Ondo and Lagos States. Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 704 individuals who were considered eligible for COVID-19 testing in 4 local governments in Lagos (307) and Ondo (397) states in Nigeria, was conducted from April-June 2021. Respondents were selected using simple random sampling. A close-ended questionnaire was administered using a digital survey platform known as SurveyCTO. Data were analyzed using R 4.1.0. Results: In Lagos state, 52.4% were females, 47.2% were males while in Ondo, 55.2% were females, 44.6% were male. Chi-square tests of association revealed that socio demographic factors significantly associated with testing patterns was education level in Lagos, and none in Ondo. Testing behavior associated with testing patterns included awareness of nearby COVID-19 testing centers, internet access, knowledge of preexisting conditions and having another member of the family testing positive at 5% significance level. Conclusion: Knowledge of pre-existing conditions, knowledge of COVID-19 symptoms, and knowing where to go when having symptoms were significantly associated with testing and willingness to test.

/pdf/factors-affecting-covid-19-testing-behaviours-among-the-30avfchu.pdf

Factors Affecting COVID-19 Testing Behaviours Among the Population in South Western Nigeria

Artificial Intelligence Skepticism in Career Domains

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Sustainable plastic waste management in a circular economy

Factors Affecting COVID-19 Testing Behaviours Among the Population in South Western Nigeria

Artificial Intelligence Skepticism in Career Domains