Bacteria may be the key to produce useful bioplastics from
the gasification of urban waste
Each year, the European Union produces three billion tonnes
of waste. This equates to six tonnes of solid waste for every EU citizen,
according to Eurostat. A major challenge is findings ways to reduce and reuse a
large amount of such waste. Until now, research has focussed on deriving gas
from urban waste. Now, the Synpol project, funded by the EU and due to be
completed in 2016, has found ways to “employ” bacteria to ferment such gases to
produce bioplastics.