This represents an 85 percent reduction compared with the company's 2003 analysis of the process, which was then operating at a smaller scale. "We looked at all of the places we were emitting greenhouse gases," NatureWorks' Erwin Vink told Discovery News. "We found that the biggest contributor is the fermentation process, and the other big contributor is electricity. So, we developed a new process technology, not only for environmental reasons, but for economic reasons. That gave significant reductions in greenhouse gases." The company also purchased renewable energy certificates to offset their electricity use. The major reason bioplastics have a favorable carbon footprint is that they are made from renewable plant sources of carbon, instead of from oil, both Vink and Yu said. Since both processes are relatively new, there should be room to further improve the footprints of both, compared with conventional plastic manufacturing, which has been optimized over years of production. Related Links: |
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