Fragmented plastic soils, polymers

Stage B, a rapid catalysed photooxidation to embrittlement (fragmentation) of the polymer which continues to oxidize in Stage C, due to the presence of prooxidant species which catalyse thermal oxidation and lead to rapid incorporation of the plastic into the soil structure with ultimate conversion to carbon dioxide and water by the combined effects of abiotic and biotic oxidation. 

Data on the radiocarbon tracer detected in various plant species is shown in Table 12.6. These results confirm that polymer fragments produced by the photodegradation of certain plastic molecules are indeed attacked and metabolized by soil micro-organisms, and are assimilated into the natural carbon cycle. Because radiocarbon assay of the CO2 produced by plant and animal... 

Soil toxicity tests on polymer fragments to ensure that any degradation products released from the plastic have no long-term deleterious effects on plants or on animals that may imbibe them. 

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