If you live in the northern hemisphere, you might have noticed that things are hotter than usual. The UK and Europe have been gripped by unprecedented levels of extreme heat: the hottest June on record, and extreme 30ºC+ temperatures for weeks on end.
Droughts and wildfires are being made worse. What starts as a hosepipe ban can quickly become a drinking water shortage – as places like South Africa and Mexico struggle to meet normal demand.
Just because the UK and Ireland are famously rainy doesn’t mean we’re immune to a water crisis.
Beyond water, there’s the heat itself. Our buildings were made to strap and store heat during the cold winters, and summer heat was never traditionally high enough to warrant AC or white paint and cladding. But the climate has measurably changed so much that AC might be the only way most buildings are habitable during the summer going forward.
Temperatures have been trending upwards for a long time now. And this is our new normal.
So, you’d be forgiven for thinking that plastic could only make things worse. But what if it’s the only thing that can save us?
Rewriting the plastic pollution story
We’re used to thinking of plastic as the villain in the climate story. A persistent, polluting presence that’s choking our oceans and filling our landfills. But it’s not a greenhouse gas – and it actually reduces them overall.
Read more: Plastic is a Scapegoat for the Climate Crisis
What if the very material we’ve been taught to see as a problem could actually become a powerful tool in our fight against a warming world?
The future of packaging isn’t about banning plastic, but about using it smarter.
Recent scientific breakthroughs suggest that polythene, in its many forms, could be far more than just a protective wrapper – it could be a climate solution.
A new piece of research has revealed an exciting new development: PET, the polythene material used for drinks bottles, can be chemically modified to bond tightly with CO2.
That means it can be used to capture and store carbon emissions.
Turning plastic waste into carbon storage
One of the biggest climate change challenges isn’t stopping emissions – we could (if we wanted to) stop that today. What we can’t currently do is take those emissions back, and reduce the blanket of greenhouse gases that are causing global heating.
The research, led by a team at the University of Copenhagen, has discovered a way to transform polythene waste into a new material called BAETA. By breaking down PET bottles and textiles through a chemical reaction at mild temperatures, they create a powdery substance that acts like a sponge for carbon dioxide.
How does BAETA work?
PET plastic is rich in carbon – it’s made of a polymerised hydrocarbon gas (ethylene). BAETA has a chemical structure that is incredibly effective at capturing CO2 from the air or from industrial exhaust fumes, in a process that works efficiently from room temperature right up to about 150ºC.
That makes it ideal for use at the end of a factory chimney, where exhaust gases are hot.
Once the BAETA is saturated with CO2, it can be heated to release a concentrated stream of the gas, which can then be stored or used in other industrial processes. The material itself can be used over and over again – making it extremely attractive as a potential solution.
This addresses two of our biggest environmental headaches at once: the mountains of plastic waste we produce, and the rising levels of CO2 in our atmosphere.
The team behind BAETA are already working to scale up production, having secured investment to move their invention from the lab towards a real-world, financially sustainable business venture.
Creating a greener circular economy
While the idea of plastic that “eats carbon” is a revolutionary step forward, polythene is already helping to combat climate change in other, more familiar ways.
The light weight of polythene packaging dramatically reduces transport emissions compared to heavier alternatives like glass or metal. Its protective qualities slash food waste (a major contributor to greenhouse gases) by keeping products fresher for longer.
That’s why everything is packaged in plastic, or at least feels that way. It is, on balance, the best possible packaging for the environment. But the issues lie at the end of life – and having a “forever solution” could help to close the loop.
The power of recyclable polythene
The key to unlocking polythene’s green potential is moving towards a circular economy, where materials are kept in use for as long as possible. That’s why we focus on recyclable polythene, as well as reusable solutions.
By designing packaging that can be easily recycled and reused, we can dramatically cut waste. The University of Copenhagen’s BAETA material is specifically designed to work with PET that would otherwise be difficult to recycle – such as mixed-colour or heavily degraded plastics. While the polythene film we work with is not currently a candidate for this process, it is still a viable circular solution.
Here at NPF Packaging, we offer virgin polythene that can go back into the market as recycled pre-consumer material. We also offer recycled blends, as a step towards closing the loop and reducing our reliance on virgin material from fossil fuels.
While the BAETA technology focuses on a specific type of PET, it just goes to show that the most sustainable approach to plastic is to view it as a resource, not waste. That’s how we frame it, too.
A realistic path forward
The climate challenge is immense – and there’s no single solution. This new research and the upcoming deployment of BAETA gives us a glimpse of a future where even our most problematic waste streams can be part of the cure.
The path forward won’t be easy, but it definitely looks more hopeful than before. Of course, it might not feel like that if you’re sweltering right now – but it’s great to see human ingenuity pushing through the barriers and making a difference.
It’s a difference we’re committed to being part of, by providing expert guidance and high quality, recyclable polythene packaging.
Get responsible, recyclable polythene – from NPF Packaging
Want to learn more about how we work with recycled and recyclable polythene packaging? Contact us or call 01773 820415.