Decompose plastic in three months?

[sub]

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/05/teen-decomposes-plastic-bag-in-three-months.php

Thoughts?

 

[Dzamija]

After that sham with the hookers and the 13-year old, I don't trust these news articles so easily.

 

[sub]

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/10/the_th_interview_erik_gustafson.php

http://news.therecord.com/article/354201

Doesn't strike me as BS

 

[kam!]

Plus, he has a very valid point. If something eventually (albeit slowly) decomposes it, you can exploit it.

 

[sub]

My question is that if such an abundant food source is available, why haven't these two organisms already multiplied exponentially? Whats preventing them from becoming plentiful enough to naturally decrease the rate of decomposure (er, thats not a word, but you get the idea) of plastics?

 

[KelesK]

My question is that if such an abundant food source is available, why haven't these two organisms already multiplied exponentially? Whats preventing them from becoming plentiful enough to naturally decrease the rate of decomposure (er, thats not a word, but you get the idea) of plastics?

If I expected you to eat as many cheeseburgers s their are plastic bags in a short period of time do you think you could do it? ;P

Leave the poor little bacteria alone, they are are prolly munching down those bags as fast as they can

Plus maybe the poor little guys have reproductive issue you don't know about... It's not nice to pick on things like that y'know ;P

 

[J-Dude]

This just sounds brilliant. A major step forward in advancing greener lifestyles. How incredibly simple. Rig up garbage dumps with these fermentation tanks and pile it all in. 3 months may mean a lag, but hey, it's a ton better than what we have now, which is just piling it high.

 

[wheres_]

Launch it into space tbh.

 

[Dokutayuu]

There are 2 articles about it, a bit elaborate for a simple hoax .

Great stuff, plastic bags could release loads of horrible stuff like chlorine if we tried burning it but a minute amount of Carbon Dioxide and water is an amazing alternative.

A fair amount of stuff in landfills is plastic so that means the need for landfill should reduce.

 

[Hibiki]

The problem is getting enough of one kind of microbe to do any good.

 

[Zeonix]

Launch it into space tbh.

Too expensive, and extremely inefficient.

 

[sub]

Hasn't warren seen futurama?