A world without plastics!
Let’s think about the current situation of the world. There are endless issues to be analysed and solved. One major problem which requires immediate attention is plastic pollution. Who do you think is responsible? What is the impact of this human act on our environment?
A peek into the current situation of the world:
Almost every single object around us is made of plastics; from spoons to furniture and roads too! Let’s think about this - what is the first thing we do right in the morning? - Brushing (of course). The tube of toothpaste and the brushes are made of plastics. But one thing to remember, they are not made of the same grade plastics.
Plastics take 1000 years to degrade and they are light in weight which causes the wind to carry them away to various different places and increases land plastic pollution. Due to the light mass of the plastics, they end up in oceans and water bodies. This causes marine dumping; the marine animals mistake it to be food and consume it. What happens next?-When the fish ends up in the stomachs of humans, the harmful chemicals like Polythene and PAH’s affect the hormones of the human body and not to forget, the destruction of food chain which affects the whole cycle of feeding relationships.
Ministry of housing and urban affairs (Swachh Bharat Mission), in its book on ‘Plastic Waste Management – Issues, solutions and case Nearly studies’, states that currently India generates around 56 lakh tonnes of plastic annually. Research says, India which was generating 61,000 tonnes of plastic waste in 2006, has increased to 1,78,00,000 in 2017- This is certainly ALARMING! 93 billion of plastics are not recycled annually in India. A survey states that, the different grade level plastics are not recycled separately due to the lack of proper recycling equipments. What happens when we recycle all of them together? -Plastics become stronger and the time it takes to degrade increases.
Sten Gustaf Thulin, the inventor of plastic bags thought that people will recycle them in the future; unfortunately, we choose to use them just once. One time use plastics cause the most damages in the water bodies.
Marine dumping has increased the size of the great garbage patch drastically. Plastics cost $13 billion in economic damage to marine ecosystems when chemicals are emitted. Approximately 100 billion plastic bags are used in the U.S per year. Think about the number of plastic bags that is being used worldwide annually? They create death zones in water bodies. Non-renewable resources play a major role in production of plastics. Renewable resources are avoided in the plastics industry as they produce lesser energy compared to non-renewable resources. The extraction of non-renewable resources includes mining as the major process. Green house gases are created which further contributes to global warming and global climate change. The geographic structure of the earth is getting affected too! Ireland enforced 15% tax on usage of plastics and the usage has reduced by 90%! Is there an end to this? What’s the solution?
What can WE as citizens do about this?
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Use fabric bags – Fabric / cloth bags has the capacity to withstand heavy loads of weight and is safe for our environment.
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Garbage segregation – Segregating wastes into bio-degradable and non-degradable will help big time.
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3Rs – Recycle, Reuse & Reduce – These are effective ways to reduce a drastic amount of pollution.
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Instead of throwing away cereal cartons, grocery covers, water bottles, beverage cans, let’s use them to store other essentials. You can reduce the opportunity to buy more plastic storage jars by reusing.
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Try hands on some DIY (Do It Yourself)
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Decor is a fun, useful and creative way to reuse different objects.
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Plastic water bottles and beverage cans can be used to grow plants.
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Pack food using stainless steel boxes and avoid plastic water bottles for schools / work. It greatly reduces the risk of chemicals (Poly Chlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons PAHs) entering our body.
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Let’s do our bit by joining NGOs who work towards clean environment, lake cleaning, etc...
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When you see someone throwing away plastics on road, do not hesitate to stop them and talk to them about it.
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Follow ‘Go Green’ in every walk of your life.
We will have to join hands and take small steps to save our environment and live a plastic free life.
Let’s be a part of a solution NOT the pollution!
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