BIODEGRADABILITY

Biodegradability is characteristic of natural substances and materials of being assimilated by micro-organisms, and thus introduced into the natural cycles. In effect, it is a concept that is familiar to everyone.

When natural organic materials go into the ground, they tend to decompose progressively, to disappear. This phenomenon is very important for the environment, which has to get rid of waste to make room for new life. Trees, plants and algae, meaning photosynthetic organisms, absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and, with the power of the sun, the inexhaustible source of energy, use it to synthesise sugars, and a whole range of other substances present in Nature.

The flow of substances and energy passes along the food chain from the plants to the herbivores, and from these, to carnivores. However, this mechanism would quickly become blocked if the opposite process did not exist, that is, if it was not possible to release carbon dioxide from organic material. So, in natural equilibrium, the process of biodegradation is as important as that of photosynthesis, of which it is both the outcome and the starting point. An important role is played in biodegradation by micro-organisms, which are present in every environment, and which are fed by organic waste. Thus, organic material is transformed again into carbon dioxide, thereby completing the natural cycle.

Mater-Bi®: Biodegradation Curves
Mater-Bi®: Certification of Biodegradability and Compostability
Biodegradability in Europe: Regulation EN 13432