Using Life Cycle Thinking to Understand the End-of-Life Impacts of Sugarcane Bagasse and Bioplastics

In 2018, the Government of Belize introduced an implementation Strategy and Action Plan to phase-out plastics as well as Styrofoam and to transition to green products like bioplastics. Bioplastics are plastics derived from plants, one of which is sugarcane bagasse (a byproduct from sugar production) plastics. Given that Belize agriculture exports consists of 60% sugarcane, bagasse is produced in excess. In this study, we will investigate the environmental impacts of replacing petroleum single-use plastics with sugarcane bagasse plastics as well as using anaerobic digestion to manage bioplastic waste. We propose to use life cycle assessment (LCA) to assist Belize with strategies for eliminating single-use plastics and methods for managing the bioplastic waste via anaerobic digestion. By using LCA, we will evaluate the environmental impact of using the bioplastics as an alternative in addition to the impacts of utilizing anaerobic digestion as a waste mitigation technique. We will consider the end-of-life cycle processes of the bagasse such as the collection, transportation, and disposal in addition to the offsets such as energy, fertilizer and biochar to analyze its environmental impact. Through analyzing these processes, we will be able to evaluate the environmental impacts of replacing single-use plastics with bagasse plastics and management of the bagasse plastic after use. Anaerobic digestion of bioplastics could lead to many different applications where the energy produced could make sugar production self-sustaining, biochar could be used for buffer zones to stop river pollution and fertilizer could enhance soil quality.