Sustainable Alternatives to Single-Use Plastic a Must

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster):  An increase in the use of plastic, especially single-use plastic, coupled with the chaotic dumping of plastic waste, is a cause for concern. An Environment and Social Development Organisation study show that 83 per cent of the people use single-use plastic bottles daily while 3.15–3.84 billion single-use plastic bottles are consumed annually. Only 21.4 per cent of it goes to recycling and 78.6 per cent of the bottles end up in the river systems, sea and dumps. The impact of the haphazard dumping of plastic bottles, which persist for up to 450 years in the environment, on public health and the environment is huge. Health experts say that chemicals such as bisphenol A and microplastics enter the food chain from these single-use plastic bottles, threatening human health and biodiversity. Also alarming is the rising trend of single-use plastic bottles and bags. When many countries have either banned or reduced single-use plastic to arrest environmental pollution and health hazards, the use of single-use plastic has increased in Bangladesh. The annual per capita plastic consumption in urban areas has tripled, as a World Bank study says, over two decades and the annual per capita plastic consumption in Dhaka has reached 24 kilograms.

The World Bank study also found that about 70 per cent of plastic waste is mismanaged and dumped injudiciously. A UN Environment Programme study says that Bangladesh is among the top 10 plastic-polluting countries and the seventh among the world’s plastic-consuming nations. An earlier Environment and Social Development Organisation study shows that annually, 87,000 tonnes of single-use plastic containers are thrown away in Bangladesh. An estimated 23,000–36,000 tonnes of plastic waste is disposed of every year in 1,212 hotspots around canals and rivers in and around Dhaka and most of this chaotically dumped waste ends up in rivers and other water bodies. Studies and field surveys say that areas that attract a large number of tourists also find a high concentration of plastic waste and there is an absence of waste management and recycling in those areas. Despite the government’s professed commitment to reducing plastic use, it has not taken any effective action so far, which has resulted in the increase of single-use plastic containers in forms such as food packaging, straws for drinks, cotton buds, sachets, coffee stirrers, soda, water and soft drink bottles and plastic bags. Experts blame government indifference for the alarming crisis.

Courtesy: www.newagebd.net