Pitted against non-biodegradable plastics, the use of eco-friendly plastics and bags must be encouraged to avert plastic pollution.
Gone are the days we were taught about pollution categorised as air pollution, water pollution, land pollution and sound pollution but as the age progressed into modern age, plastics replaced all the traditionally usable stuffs, made chiefly of earth and different metals. As most of the plastics was non-biodegradable and hence not eco-friendly, it emerged as the potent pollutant and began to pose a threat to the environment.
Gradually, plastic pollution worsened and has become a major cause of concern worldwide in modern times. Plastic pollution is the outcome of the accumulation of plastic debris, which can emanate from the sources like littering of disposable plastic items such as food wrappers, plastic bags, razors, and bottles.
Single-use plastic like toys and similar products made from plastic is another source contributing to such pollution.
Industries are a source as well. Many industries use plastic as a raw material, and industrial processes can release plastic particles and chemicals into the environment. When plastic objects end up as litter, they break down into tiny pieces when exposed to sunlight and other elements. Water condenses on small particles in the air, such as microplastics, which start their journey on roads, farms, and waste sources.
Pitted against non-biodegradable plastic, eco-friendly plastics are increasingly grabbing attention as a possible solution. Eco-friendly plastics are those plastics that have the least impact on the environment, are safe for human beings and can be recycled or biodegraded. There are multiple types of eco-friendly plastics available, depending on their degradation methods and raw material sources. One type of eco-friendly plastic is photo-degradable plastics.
These plastics generally decompose under ultraviolet or visible light irradiation, such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). Biodegradable plastics are another type that can completely decompose into non-toxic substances under the action of microorganisms. Instances of biodegradable plastics include polylactic acid (PLA) and polycaprolactone (PCL). Marine eco-friendly plastic is a new type of plastic made from waste plastics collected from the seas and the ocean, such as the marine eco-friendly plastic promoted by NextWave Plastics.
Eco-materials are materials made from renewable resources, such as wood fiber, spider web silk and crustaceans are also getting increasingly popular nowadays. There is striking resemblance between eco-friendly plastics and degradable plastics as they share identical characteristics but there are striking differences between them as well. Eco-friendly plastic is a broad concept that encompasses in it degradable plastic and common plastic which can be recycled.
This type of plastics may not always decompose and disappear in nature and may require professional treatment to achieve recycling whereas degradable plastic is a narrow concept that only includes special plastic that can decompose and disappear in nature. Degradable plastics can be entirely decomposed into non-toxic substances by micro-organisms or light within a certain period.
Studies and researches reveal that every year, more than 280 million tonnes of plastic products turn into waste, with 46% landfilled and 22% mismanaged as litter. Unlike other materials, plastic is highly adamant and rigid and so doesn’t easily biodegrade.
It can take up to 1,000 years to break down. So when it is dumped or discarded, it begins to build up in the environment until it reaches a crisis point. As this pollution is highly stifling, it chokes water bodies like rivers, marine wildlife, damages soil and poisons groundwater and can pose serious health hazards dis-balancing the eco-system.
Plastic-wrapped leftovers of food stuffs littered here and there on roads and lanes attract cattles and once consumed by them threaten to take their lives. Wherever plastic is found littered, the fertility of the earth drastically nosedives and the seeds buried under do not germinate. So, the land turns barren. Plastic blocks minor to major drains and the pile-ups of polyethylene pollute the atmosphere.
If reports are to be believed, around 1500 million tonnes of plastic have been amassed on the entire planet, which is constantly throttling the environment. Today, the use of plastic per person is esteemed as 18 kilograms whereas its recycling is pegged at only 15.2 percent.
Also, plastic recycling is not the only way out as more pollution spreads through recycling of plastic as well. As per 1990 data, its consumption in the country was twenty thousand tonnes which is now reported to reach three to four lakh tonnes that does not bode well for future.
The people at large have to step forward to avert the pollution caused by polyethylene, and every soul has to be involved in coping with it at one’s own level. Whether it is minor or major, men or women, educated or uneducated, rich or poor, urbanites or villagers, all have to join hands together to get rid of the menace of plastic.
The responsible and matured members of the family should discard polyethylene and also discourage all other members from using it. Moreover, mass awareness orientations must be held to sensitise the mass. Jute bags and eco-friendly plastics must be promoted by every company and outlet and even consumers must insist on it. If consumers stop using it, its need will fall day by day and a time will come when polyethylene will be eliminated from our environment.
The Government machinery too needs to close the units engaged in the manufacture of polyethylene. Additional solution to it lies in the recycling of the plastics. There is no exaggeration to say that we are living in the polyethylene or plastic era, every second of which is destroying the environment. If we want to get rid of plastic in future, it will be too late as by then the entire environment will become contaminated by it. So, the time to act is NOW.
By Md. Ahtesham Ahmad
Andal, West Bengal,
India
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