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Thesis advisor: Heather C. Olins / This study creates a protocol to investigate microplastics in local freshwater wetlands surrounding Boston College. This study also investigated potential plastic-degrading bacteria in the sediment of local freshwater wetlands. A list of potential plastic-degrading bacterial species and genera were compiled from the literature. Using these compiled lists, we searched for these potential plastic-degrading organisms in our metagenomics and 16S datasets. Looking for potential correlations between abiotic factors and the abundance of potential plastic-degrading bacteria, for both data sets, it was found that sandy sediment had a higher abundance of potential plastic-degrading bacteria than non-sandy sediment. Finally, our list of plastic-degrading bacterial species was cross-referenced with a previously compiled list of potential pathogens. Of the 26 taxa in our sites that were identified as potential plastic-degrading bacteria, 57.69% of those taxa are also potentially pathogenic to humans. / Thesis (BS) — Boston College, 2020. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Earth and Environmental Sciences.

Petroleum-based plastics have replaced many natural materials in their former applications. With their excellent properties, they have found widespread uses in almost every area of human life. However, the high recalcitrance of many synthetic plastics results in their long persistence in the environment, and the growing amount of plastic waste ending up in landfills and in the oceans has become a global concern. In recent years, a number of microbial enzymes capable of modifying or degrading recalcitrant synthetic polymers have been identified. They are emerging as candidates for the development of biocatalytic plastic recycling processes, by which valuable raw materials can be recovered in an environmentally sustainable way. This review is focused on microbial biocatalysts involved in the degradation of the synthetic plastics polyethylene, polystyrene, polyurethane and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Recent progress in the application of polyester hydrolases for the recovery of PET building blocks and challenges for the application of these enzymes in alternative plastic waste recycling processes will be discussed.