Discovered in Pakistan: Plastic-eating fungus answer to world’s waste crisis

ISLAMABAD: A plastic-eating fungus discovered on a rubbish dump in Pakistan could be adapted to destroy waste on land and oceans, international media reported.

The possibility of breaking down plastic waste within weeks rather than hundreds of years will be highlighted when the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew publishes its first report on the fungus. Experts from around the world will gather at the internationally-renowned Kew Gardens in West London this week to discuss the future of research into the conservation and use of fungi.

The scientists working on a rubbish dump in Islamabad found fungus whose enzyme broke down plastics such as polyester polyurethane.