Whether you are aware of it or not, plastics
play a big part in our day-to-day life. Plastic is used in everything from cell
phone parts to doll parts and from soft drink bottles to the refrigerators they
are stored in. More clothing is made out of polyester and nylon, both plastics,
than cotton or wool. It’s used in food packaging, as building materials and
most of our electronic devices. We wrap stuff in it and even eat or cook in it.
From medical devices that keep blood flowing, joints moving and heart beating
to impact-resistant vehicle parts, plastic saves lives every day. From the vehicle
you ride to the television you watch; plastics are everywhere around us… quite literally!
Very few inventions in modern history have
been as successful as plastic. It has resistance to corrosion & chemicals,
low electrical & thermal conductivity, high strength-to-weight ratio, colours
available in a wide variety, transparent, resistance to shock, good durability,
low cost, easy to manufacture, resistant to water and so on. Due to which, the
uses of plastic have grown exponentially huge in growing range of applications,
especially over the past couple of decades.
Plastic is everywhere not because it was
better than the natural counterparts it replaced, but because it was lighter and
cheaper; so much cheaper, in fact, that it was easier to justify throwing it away
after use. Customers found this single-use or disposable plastic convenient,
and businesses were happy to sell them a new plastic container for every beverage
or sandwich they bought. Starting from a biscuit to chips to grocery, each &
every eatable comes wrapped in plastic. People often leave stores with dozens of
plastic bags that just get thrown away.
But what happens to that beverage bottle or
food container or shopping bag after we are done? It is disposed of as garbage,
which eventually ends up in landfills or oceans or burnt. There it remains
indefinitely.
The accumulation of plastic material in the
Earth's environment is known as Plastic pollution. Plastic has toxic pollutants
that damage the environment and cause land, water, and air pollution; adversely
affecting wildlife, wildlife habitat and humans too!
Households generate maximum plastic waste,
of which water & soft drink bottles form a large number. Very less of the
total plastic waste is being recycled. Some plastics have fibres which shorten
with every time it is recycled. Thus, a plastic can be recycled only few times
before it is no longer recyclable. Such plastic ultimately finds their way to
landfills or dumping yards.
Overuse
of plastic is the main cause of plastic pollution. But it doesn’t decompose, and it releases an
incredible amount of toxins into the air & water if they’re burned. It can take
hundreds or even thousands of years for plastic to break down, so the damage to
the environment is long-lasting.
But, does plastic ever break down?
No one exactly knows how long plastic takes
to break down, but it is believed to take hundreds or even thousands of years.
Most plastic items never fully disappear;
they just get smaller and smaller (Microplastics). According to a recent report, plastic
fragments have been found in the digestive tracts of animals in Mariana trench, the deepest
part of the oceans. It is not just the accumulation of plastics that harms the
environment - it is also the fragments and toxins released during decomposition
that pollute our soil and water. Many of these tiny plastic particles are
swallowed by farm animals or fish who mistake them for food. Surprisingly, plastic have also found
their way onto our dinner plates. They’ve also been found in a majority of the
world’s tap water. The findings illustrate how incredibly wide humanity’s
impact on the planet has become. We are almost trapped in plastics.
The seas near Mumbai and Kerala are among
the worst polluted in the world. Plastic debris affects at least 267 species
worldwide, including 86% of all sea turtle species, 44% of all seabird species,
and 43% of all marine mammal species. If current trends continue, our oceans
could contain more plastic than fish by 2050.
By clogging sewers and providing breeding
grounds for mosquitoes and pests, plastic waste - especially plastic bags - can
increase the transmission of vector-borne diseases like malaria or dengue.
In addition to harming plants, animals, and
people, it costs billions of rupees every year for cleanup of areas exposed to
plastic toxins. Many regions have seen a decrease in tourism because of the
amount of pollution in their environment, which can have a serious impact on
local economies.
Our Earth is drowning in plastic pollution.
While plastic has many valuable uses, we have become addicted to single-use or
disposable plastic - which have severe environmental consequences.
Are there any Solutions to the Plastic
Pollution?
Unfortunately, we can’t remove or ban
plastic completely. But we can definitely reduce the disposable plastic use. We,
consumers can help fix the problem by making an effort to reduce plastic waste
by using reusable bags while shopping. We have to change how we source our food
(like buying more at local markets and from farmers), and to make retailers
change their food sourcing practices (without plastic packaging). Likewise,
drinking from a reusable water bottle instead of a disposable one, avoiding
to-go containers like coffee-shops cups, straws and restaurants containers, avoiding
to buy household products packed in plastic etc are great ways. After reducing
plastic use as much as possible, one can send plastic to recycle. Jars, milk
jugs, bottles, broken plastic housewares and even items like ink cartridges can
be recycled. The waste-traders will be happy to do that and you will be
delighted to make some money.
Even small changes in your day-to-day life
can add up and greatly reduce the amount of plastic waste in the environment.
Plastic pollution has a big impact on the
environment, but plastic waste isn’t unavoidable. Every time you make the choice
to avoid or recycle plastic products, you lower the risk of environmental
damage. Be conscious of your choices, and encourage those around you to think
twice before they throw away plastic or buy unnecessary plastic items.
Waste is everybody's responsibility. A
waste reduction strategy can be incorporated by each of us whether at home or
at work by following the Reduce - Reuse - Recycle principle. This will not only
reduce the amount of solid waste going to landfill, but turn waste into a
resource & also save our fast depleting natural resources.
We need to slow the flow of plastic at its
source, but we also need to improve the way we manufacture, use, recycle and
how we manage our plastic waste to minimize its impact on our environment.
Because right now, a lot of it ends up in the environment.