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Challenges Posed by the Use of Plastic Mulch
2025-04-28 15:47
The Current Status and Challenges of Plastic Mulch
As autumn gives way to winter, plastic mulch films dance in the wind, spreading across suburban-rural fringes and numerous rural areas—almost becoming a "landmark sight." Yet, this picturesque scene undeniably brings with it deep frustration and helplessness.
As an indispensable agricultural input in food production, plastic mulch technology plays a variety of significant roles. It helps raise soil temperatures, effectively reduces evaporation of surface moisture, suppresses weed growth—and even inhibits salt accumulation while protecting seedlings—providing robust support for the smooth progression of agricultural activities.
Since the introduction of plastic mulch film technology to China, its application has rapidly expanded into numerous crop sectors, including cotton, corn, and potatoes. While the use of mulch films has significantly boosted agricultural productivity across the country, it has also led to environmental pollution due to the challenges associated with their recycling.
China ranks among the world leaders in plastic film mulching technology, with not only extensive coverage areas but also annual usage reaching as high as one million tons. However, while the widespread adoption of plastic films has, to some extent, boosted crop yields, it has also given rise to increasingly significant environmental pollution issues that cannot be ignored.
These plastic mulch films, unable to biodegrade, accumulate extensively in the soil, directly leading to reduced crop yields and lower farmer incomes. Moreover, they severely undermine the long-term sustainability of agricultural land and threaten the industry's ability to maintain productive farming practices over time. The non-degradable nature of these films causes soil contamination, jeopardizing the sustainability of farmland—and urgent solutions are urgently needed.
Zhang Zhenhe, President of the China Agricultural Plastics Application Technology Association, pointed out that compared to advanced countries like Europe, the U.S., Japan, and South Korea, the thickness of mulch films commonly used in China is relatively thin. To cut costs, many farmers have turned to illegally produced ultra-thin mulch films, which not only complicates recycling efforts but also poses a significant threat to the long-term sustainability of agriculture. Take Shandong Province, a major agricultural hub, as an example—its agricultural film recycling rate stands at just 33%, far below international standards. In China, the widespread use of thinner films, coupled with the increasing prevalence of non-compliant ultra-thin varieties, has made recycling significantly more challenging, resulting in recycling rates that lag far behind global benchmarks.
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Innovations and Applications of Dual-Degradable Mulch Films
Take Shandong Province, a major agricultural province, as an example—its agricultural film recycling rate stands at only 33%, far below international best practices. The report from the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China clearly emphasized the need to strengthen both the control and remediation of soil pollution, while also stepping up efforts to prevent and address agricultural non-point source pollution. This vision deeply embodies the development philosophy that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets," and when it comes to the issue of white pollution, we must never simply stand by and let it happen.
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