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The environmental impacts of a compostable greenhouse film composed of 85% poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) and 15% talc are examined within a cradle-to-grave framework using an environmental life cycle assessment (LCA). This assessment is essential for understanding the sustainability of this solution in relation to the conventional, non-biodegradable plastics commonly used for greenhouse cover materials in Ontario, thereby supporting the resiliency and sustainability of the greenhouse agriculture sector. The Ecoinvent database within SimaPro software was coupled with the key standards of ISO 14040:2006 and 14044:2006 to conduct an environmental LCA per functional unit of 1 kg of PBAT-talc film. Data consisted of primary and secondary inventory sourced from the University of Guelph Bioproducts Discovery and Development Centre and literature, respectively. Using the TRACI 2.1 method, environmental burdens were calculated and mitigated. Key hotspots emerged from the preparation, blown film, and composting stages. By incorporating sustainable energy mixes and biobased components of PBAT instead of petroleum-based compounds, the leading normalized categories of carcinogenic and ecotoxicity impacts were significantly reduced. With these suggested sensitivity modifications, PBAT-talc film proves to be the more sustainable option compared to all other conventional films. The Ontario agricultural greenhouse industry must seek greenhouse cover materials with the least environmental impacts, as this film demonstrates relative to other options. Aligning with global and national initiatives, this study addresses Ontario's greenhouse cover sustainability in the agriculture sector, with additional recommendations to further improve these outcomes.
Hasan et al. (Thu,) studied this question.