Understanding the biodegradation of different materials in
anaerobic conditions such as in industrial sewage sludge AD systems,
landfills and anoxic environments is important since under
these conditions, microorganisms mineralize organic substrates to
both CO2 and methane. Methane itself can be used as a fuel source
but if not captured it has a global warming potential 21 times
stronger than CO2. Since in the U.S. only 30% of the landfills capture
methane and among those that do capture, only a small percentage
of the methane produced is recovered, then biodegradable plastics
in landfills have a greater potential than composted biodegradable
plastics to contribute to global warming.