Earth Day
Breaking down the value of plastic
April 22, 2025
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Petri dishes containing different bacteria isolated by researchers with Open Plastic. Most of the bacteria has come from the guts of mealworms or superworms. [Photo supplied]
Think back to the last time something was delivered to your home – did you notice if your clothing order came in individual plastic bags, do you recall if you were offered a choice between plastic or biodegradable utensils with your takeout?
How we engage, or not engage, with plastics in our everyday lives is one link in the plastics value chain. Finding value in plastics that have served their purpose, or “valorization,” asks us to consider society’s use of plastics holistically. This is everything from advancing innovations in breaking plastics down to investigating plastic alternatives and ensuring sustainable solutions are most impactful and ultimately, socially accepted. As a result, when we consider Canada’s goal of achieving , the issue is larger than just altering manufacturing practices or broadening recycling programs. It requires a multi-perspective approach involving all participants of the value chain to determine how science and policy can work together for sustainable solutions.
This is the driving motivation behind . The research program began at Queen’s in 2021 with $7.9 million in support from Genome Canada to explore a microbial platform for breaking down and valorizing waste plastic. Since then, the program, affiliated with Queen’s Contaminants of Emerging Concern – Research Excellence Network (CEC-REN), has expanded to finding solutions to plastics pollution through all possible, and sometimes unexpected, avenues, from investigating the gut bacteria of superworms to exploring the opportunities of a circular plastics economy.
Innovations in biochemical technology
Recycling plastic actually refers to a variety of different processes that lead to the repurposing of plastics’ components. Where mechanical recycling creates new products while maintaining plastics’ original chemical form, biochemical and chemical recycling work to convert plastics into their original building blocks. It’s the science behind how plastic water bottles can be turned into polyester fabric for clothing. However, breaking down or degrading plastic is not a one-size-fits-all approach as complex plastics requires multi-pronged solutions.
The damage done to the styrofoam pieces is the result of the mealworms eating the plastic. [Photo supplied]
This has led researchers with Open Plastic to seek out novel enzymes in seemingly unusual places. In observing that mealworms and superworms can eat plastic, researchers identified bacteria in their gut microbiome could be used to degrade certain plastic. Through their work characterizing and searching microbial genomes, such as the ones found in these worms, Open Plastic researchers have recently set a new gold-standard in enzymatic nylon recycling and will next look to break down the chemical variability that makes polyurethane so difficult.
However, Open Plastic considers these promising discoveries only the start of what is possible. The team is now working to improve their new enzyme to optimize a process for degrading plastics that would be not only scalable for industry but economically viable.
Championing an ‘open science’ approach
Open Plastic brings together researchers from across a variety of disciplines at Queen’s from chemical engineering to policy studies, along with industry and municipal partners, and collaborators from other institutions. (Biology) is the Project Leader, working with Co-Leaders (Chemistry) and (Chemical Engineering) to ensure an interdisciplinary and agile approach that supports the team’s wide range of expertise and an environment that keeps pace with real-world needs.
“By using an ‘open science’ approach in our network, we can have a free flow of expertise, results, and ideas between university researchers and our industrial partners, and speed up the development process.”
– Dr. David Zechel, Project Co-Leader
The is an opportunity to bring this network together, representing all the member components of the plastics value chain. Founded in 2023, the annual multi-day event embodies the network’s wholistic approach to plastics recycling. Researchers, industry, and policymakers reflect on technological advances while considering the context of societal impact, commercial value chains, and practical solution adoptions and implementations.
Participants of the 2024 Open Plastic symposium. [Photo supplied]
Building Canada’s workforce and engaging for awareness
Raising awareness among students and engaging the public on the plastics problem is another key component to Open Plastic. In 2024, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) awarded $1.65 million to members of Open Plastic to develop a collaborative research and training experience program to prepare students to work in cleantech fields. The resulting program, CREATE-PLASTICS, will leverage field advancements and Open Plastic’s research to provide training and support on topics related to the circular economy, systems thinking and human-centred design approaches, and science to impact. Students will engage with the network’s broad partnerships to learn directly from field leaders and participate in internships and experiential opportunities in the environmental sector. The program development is underway with plans to launch online modules in the summer.
Participating in events such as the annual Science Rendezvous Kingston is one way the network’s researchers talk directly with youth about sustainability. Doing outreach with the public often opens people’s eyes to the challenges of the plastics lifecycle beyond how we consume and dispose of it. Out of sight, should not lead to out of mind.
“Disseminating research results to the community is part of our responsibilities as researchers. These outreach events are a great way to spread some of that knowledge, excite people about science, and perhaps give a little hope that solutions may be on the horizon for some of the challenges impacting society and the environment.”
– Dr. George diCenzo, Project Leader
To learn more about Open Plastic, visit the , stay up to date on the outcomes of held in April, and meet the researchers (along with their superworms) at Science Rendezvous Kingston on May 10, 2025.
