Recently, a plastic-eating fungus was discovered in a landfill in Pakistan. Soil samples indicate a strain of fungus called Aspergillus Tubingensis, which breaks down polyester polyurethane in a few weeks rather than in hundreds of years. Polyurethane is used to manufacture everyday objects such as tyres and condoms, both of which end up in a landfill.

Dr Khan, the study’s lead author, explains: "This could pave the way for using the fungus in waste treatment plants, or even in soils which are already contaminated by plastic waste."

This is not the first time scientists discovered plastic-eating microbes. Last year it was discovered that wax worms eat Polyethylene (plastic bags). Furthermore, a study has discovered a new type of bacteria that is also capable of breaking down a certain type of plastic, Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), which is used to make plastic bottles.