May 01, 2017

On April 5, ASTM International’s committee on plastics (D20) and the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) co-sponsored a workshop on standards for degradable, biodegradable, and biobased products. The event took place alongside D20 meetings held during ASTM’s April committee week in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 

The workshop brought together standards development organizations from around the world to discuss how specifications, tests, and other standards in this area are used globally. Attendees also discussed whether new or revised standards related to degradability, biodegradability, and biobased products are needed.

Topics discussed included testing, specification, and certification related to:

• Biobased and renewable-resource content;
• Aerobic degradability and biodegradability;
• Anaerobic degradability and biodegradability; and
• Environmental degradability and biodegradability.

Presenters and topics included the following:

• Maria Gustafsson, Swedish Standards Institute, “Biobased Standards Development in Europe – Sustainability, Life Cycle Assessments, and How to Communicate Them”;
• Ramani Narayan, Ph.D., Michigan State University, “Issues with the New European Biobased Content Certification Based on EN 16785”; and
• Morton Barlaz, Ph.D., P.E., North Carolina State University: “Requirements of Anaerobic Biodegradation Test Methods.”

Watch a video of Maria Gustafsson, project manager at the Swedish Standards Institute (SIS) being interviewed about the meeting.