20.500.12556/DiRROS-22515 Environmental and littering impacts of disposable cups made of polypropylene and polylactic acid in Germany As a result of improper management, plastics such as drinking cups are accumulating in environmental compartments worldwide, impacting biodiversity and ecosystem services. The goal of this study is to analyze and compare potential environmental impacts of disposable cups made of Polypropylene and Polylactic acid with the help of a cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment, including impacts related to the littering of these cups. Plastic pollution impacts are calculated based on the products' persistence in the environment, comparing the results of our own experiment to literature data. As an indication of the possible adverse health effects of Polypropylene and Polylactic acid, a toxicity test of the chemical mixtures migrating from the cups is conducted. Overall, the cups made of Polypropylene show lower environmental impacts compared to those made of Polylactic acid when the experimentally determined degradation rates are used. Nevertheless, regarding toxicity of the chemical migrates, the cup made of Polylactic acid performs better than the one made of Polypropylene. Considering all impact categories, there is no overall improvement in environmental impacts of producing the cup from Polylactic acid instead of Polypropylene. Our results indicate the importance of using degradation data measured specifically for the assessed product. Methodologically, we demonstrate a possible integration of life cycle assessment and safe-and-sustainable-by-design scoring. Further development of the plastic pollution impact category is needed to integrate effects on the terrestrial environment. degradation accelerated weathering product environmental footprint life cycle assessment plastic pollution toxicity razgradnja pospešeno staranje okoljski odtis izdelka ocena življenjskega cikla onesnaženje s plastiko toksičnost true false true Elsevier B.V. Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik © 2025 The Authors Neznano 2025-05-27 07:50:04 2025-05-27 10:02:06 2025-10-24 03:51:27 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2025 0 0 str. 34-45 Vol. 57 Jul. 2025 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2025-04-17 620.1/.2 2352-5509 10.1016/j.spc.2025.04.013 235266563 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352550925000879 1 7081f5d8-3abe-11f0-963a-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=32547 RAZ_Galafton_Christina_2025.pdf RAZ_Galafton_Christina_2025.pdf 1 4EFD9FFAD5463EC84242B059C28B2C64 1fe74e7ea905de78579e06b713835ffe4991bbcffb131c8e116fa7e7db1ee138 c09c8357-3ad0-11f0-963a-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=32548 RAZ_Galafton_Christina_2025.pdf RAZ_Galafton_Christina_2025.pdf 1 CCBA6D9AADF3582E3C250C307F05F319 9b2254822e3af44c230d836a3c68de53dbb674f37d3f38ad2c1c508c04d02760 ceeba950-3ad0-11f0-963a-001a4af901a5 https://dirros.openscience.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=32549 Zavod za gradbeništvo Slovenije 0 0 0