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Harmful effects of polythene on human health and enviroment

Young Bites. Dated: 5/26/2018 11:35:17 AM

Polythene bags have harmful effects to the environment. *Polythene bags are one kind of plastics which are non-biodegradable and cause environmental pollution. *They undergo a process known as photo degradation, in which they break down into smaller and smaller toxic particles.
They are bad for wildlife. Plastic bags can choke or poison fish, animals and birds, with marine wildlife particularly vulnerable. As a study cited by the Government explains, “when seabirds, sea mammals or fish ingest plastic particles, blocking of the gut is likely to harm or even kill the organism”.
Due to the use of chemical additives during plastic production,plastics have potentially harmful effects that could prove to be carcinogenic or promote endocrine disruption.. Through biomonitoring, chemicals in plastics, such as BPA and phthalates, have been identified in the human population.
Plastic bags tend to disrupt the environment in a serious way. They get into soil and slowly release toxic chemicals. They eventually break down into the soil, with the unfortunate result being that animals eat them and often choke and die. Number of marine animals are killed every year from plastic bag litter in the marine environment as they often mistake plastic bags for food such as jellyfish. Plastic bags, once ingested, cannot be digested or passed by an animal so it stays in the gut.
“The science shows that moving from plastic to paper is not necessarily ‘greener,’” he says. Instead, it may simply shift the environmental impact from decreasing litter to increasing resource use and greenhouse gas emissions. To really go green, he suggests committing to reusable bags, even if made from plastic.
Chemicals added to plastics are absorbed by human bodies. Some of these compounds have been found to alter hormones or have other potential human health effects. Plastic debris, laced with chemicals and often ingested by marine animals, can injure or poison wildlife.
Many believe that paper bags are more environmentally friendly thanplastic bags because they are made from a renewable resource, can biodegrade, and are recyclable. Fact: Plastic shopping bags outperform paper bags environmentally – on manufacturing, on reuse, and on solid waste volume and generation. Plastic bags pollute our land and water. Because they are so lightweight, plastic bags can travel long distances by wind and water. They litter our landscapes, get caught in fences and trees, float around in waterways, and can eventually make their way into the world’s oceans. The plastic polymers are not regarded as toxic, but there may be toxic residual chemicals, chemical additives and degradation products in the plastic products that can leach out as they are not bound to the plastic polymer. Plastics also cause many waste problems. They undergo a process known as photo degradation, in which they break down into smaller and smaller toxic particles.
These particles contaminate soil and water and entering the food chain when eaten accidentally by animals like cows.
Polythene bags are very dangerous that they can cause the death of the cattle.
Polythene bags are also responsible for the clogging of drainage systems in cities and towns.
Plastics take several years to decompose. Jute bags are made up of natural, biodegradable materials. They do not pose any danger in the environment. They do not release any toxic substances into environment during their degradation.
Once polythene bags are used, they often make their way to the streets, beaches and waterways. They litter the environment. When polythene bags are burned, they produce toxic fumes and pollute the air. Marine animals swallow plastic bags, mistaking them for food, and die. Even after animals bodies decompose, the plastic bags stay intact, and another animal can get hurt. Plastic bags are almost not biodegradable, since they do not decompose during the time span of human lives. Polythene bags eventually break down into small particles resembling plankton, one of the main animal food sources. Plastic generally degrades in about 500 - 1000 years, though we may never know its actual degradation time, as this material has been in long-term use only since the last century. During its manufacture, many hazardous chemicals are emitted that can lead to dreadful diseases in humans as well as other animals. Ethylene oxide, xylene, and benzene are some of the chemical toxins present in plastic, which can have hazardous effects on the environment. It is not easy to dispose it off, and it can cause permanent harm to living beings. Several additives found in plastic, such as phthalates, adipates, and even alkylphenols, have been recognized as toxic materials. Vinyl chloride, which is used in the manufacturing of PVC pipes, is classified as a carcinogen.
Toxic chemical release during manufacture is another significant source of the negative environmental impact of plastics. A whole host of carcinogenic, neurotoxic, and hormone-disruptive chemicals are standard ingredients and waste products of plastic production, and they inevitably find their way into our ecology through water, land, and air pollution. Some of the more familiar compounds include vinyl chloride (in PVC), dioxins (in PVC), benzene (in polystyrene), phthalates and other plasticizers (in PVC and others), formaldehyde, and bisphenol-A, or BPA (in polycarbonate). Many of these are persistent organic pollutants (POPs)—some of the most damaging toxins on the planet, owing to a combination of their persistence in the environment and their high levels of toxicity. These are discussed in greater detail later in this chapter as a consideration of human health; however, their unmitigated release into the environment affects all terrestrial and aquatic life with which they come into contact. Plastic bags are non-biodegradable, and are extremely hazardous to the environment. They are a major constituent of the filth and garbage in our society. However, the chemical structure of most plastics renders them resistant to many natural processes of degradation and as a result they are slow to degrade. Together, these two factors have led to a high prominence of plastic pollution in the environment. Plastic pollution can afflict land, waterways and oceans. Living organisms, particularly marine animals, can be harmed either by mechanical effects, such as entanglement in plastic objects or problems related to ingestion of plastic waste, or through exposure to chemicals within plastics that interfere with their physiology. Humans are also affected by plastic pollution, such as through disruption of various hormonal mechanisms. Some of the chemicals used in plastic production can cause dermatitis upon contact with human skin. It can also affect humans in which it may create an eyesore that interferes with enjoyment of the natural environment.Govt should take effective measures to create awareness of plastic pollution among population and should have a complete blanket ban on it.