AWARENESS OF PLASTIC POLLUTION AND REMEDIAL

Be it clothing, footwear, transport, telecommunications, or packaging materials that aid the transport of a large variety of food, drink and other goods, practically all aspects of daily life involve the use of plastics today. Importantly, plastics also bring us energy savings. For e.g., it only takes 12 minutes to make a plastic bag! And being economical, lightweight, strong, long-lasting, corrosion-resistant materials with high thermal and electrical insulation features, the myriad benefits of plastics is virtually unquestionable today. Can you imagine life without plastic? Dangers of Plastic Use Despite the many merits of plastics, however, concerns also abound about their usage and proper disposal. These range from the accumulation of waste in landfills and natural habitats to the potential for certain plastics to transfer hazardous chemicals to both wildlife and humans, resulting in death or disease. Thus, while convenient for daily use, plastic has also become an alarming environmental threat. In fact, according to the predictions of Scientists, if present trends continue, by 2050, the oceans will contain more plastic than fish! Additionally, given the dwindling reserves of fossil fuels and limited capacity of landfills to store wastage (especially considering that plastics take centuries together to break down), the use of short-lived plastic products such as plastic bags, is simply unsustainable. Moreover, an astounding 90 per cent of plastic produced globally is not recycled, resulting in large waste management issues, worldwide. Also, over 40 per cent of plastic is used for packaging alone! In addition, plastic waste can dangerously pollute a wide range of natural terrestrial, freshwater and marine habitats. Waste plastic can either be recycled or burnt. Burning plastic leads to the emission of harmful chemical gases like carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrous oxide (NO), methane (CH4), sulphur dioxide (SO2), and so on. These polluting gasses cause a significant increase in the greenhouse effect. We wouldn’t want to breathe polluted air, now would we? Plastics’ Impact on Human Health Also, the improper disposal of plastic bags results in plastics finding their way into the drainage system. This in turn can result in drains getting choked; thereby creating an unhygienic environment that may give rise to water borne diseases like malaria or cholera. Additionally, plastics can also contaminate ground water. According to the estimates of most scientists, plastic amounting to an astounding eight million metric tons enter our oceans every year! This implies that the equivalent of an entire garbage truck full of plastic dumps its contents into the ocean every single minute. Isn’t that scary? While plastics are not intrinsically harmful or toxic, their manufacture involves the use of organic and inorganic additives like colourants and pigments, plasticizers, antioxidants, stabilizers and metals that can be harmful. There are many chemical additives that give plastic products their desirable performance properties such as their colour or durability. These can also have negative impacts on the environment as well as on human health. Some of these effects include: Direct toxicity resulting from lead, cadmium, and mercury Carcinogens, such as diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) Endocrine disruption, leading to birth defects, developmental problems in children, immune system supression, and cancers. Importantly, most plastic types have also been found to contaminate foods. This includes Styrene from Polystyrene, Plasticizers from PVC, Antioxidants from Polyethylene, and Acetaldehyde from PET. Being exposed to harmful chemicals during the manufacturing process, chemicals being transferred from the plastic packaging to the foods they contain or chewing of plastic teethers and toys by children, to cite some examples, are all associated with plastics’ serious negative effects on health.