1. Home
2. Editorial

Plastic ban: Laws should be hard and enforced strictly

Young Bites. Dated: 1/18/2020 1:44:19 PM

The canals these days in Jammu are empty and one can see the huge amount of plastic bags dumped everywhere in these canals. These Canals are giving a look of dumping yards. Lot many things are being said on cleanliness but the fact remains that there is no check. People are dumping plastic into running canals. Canals alongside Akhnoor road, Miran Sahab and other areas look like dumping yards. One can only see huge chunks plastic bags, plastic bottles in these canals. It is creating a very bad scene for the passer bys. Here both the authorities and people are equally responsible. Plastic is being used everywhere and there is no check by the authorities. Common masses being selfish are using the plastic bags to carry vegetables and groceries because it is easy to carry in plastic bags. Every product has a shelf life, but sadly that is not the case with plastics. The fact is that our planet cannot digest plastic. Plastics take around 500 to 1000 years to completely degrade due to the presence of complex polymers. Experts have estimated that annual waste generation in India will increase to 165 million tonnes by 2030. This means that around 66,000 hectares of land is needed to set up a landfill site which is 10 metres high and can hold up to 20 years’ waste. That is almost 90% of Bengaluru’s area. If we do not change our waste practices now then we will soon be buried in our own muck. Currently in India, there is only one law that is in place – No manufacturer or vendor can use a plastic bag which is below 50 microns as thinner bags pose a major threat to the environment due to its non-disposability. The usage of plastic bags is still high as the ban is not implemented on all plastic bags. Many big brands and vendors have started charging the customers for the polybags in order to commercially discourage them, but it is so far not been effective as there is no law or guidelines that says shopkeepers should charge money from the customers for the polybag. Several cities globally have begun banning the use of plastic bags while some have enforced restricted laws against the use of plastic bags because of the negative effects of the use of their usage. Besides, the use of plastic bags is considered as one of the great issues that humans are facing in their contemporary life. Cities such as China have banned the use of plastics. Bangladesh and India has only banned the use and sale of polythene bags which basically have thickness of less than 50 microns. Most of plastic is made of polypropylene which is a material manufactured from petroleum and natural gas. All of the materials are non-renewable fossil fuel-based materials and through their extraction and even production, greenhouse gases are created which further contribute to global climate change. In truth, petroleum based plastic bags never degrade. Instead of the plastic degrading, it is broken down into small tiny pieces which are swept down and end up in the oceans which are then consumed by wildlife. Currently, there are approximately 46,000-1,000,000 plastic fragments floating within every square mile of the globes oceans. There are some chemicals from the plastic bags which can disrupt the normal functioning of hormones in the body. Plastic bags never degrade completely which shows that as more of them are produced by companies, then more are introduced into the environment. Therefore, the more the amount of plastic bags the more there is plastic pollution and its effects. Banning the use of plastic bags will help reduce this great effect. Plastic menace is also one of the major causes that is making waste management an Herculean task for the country. A simple piece of policy can achieve big result, the need of the hour in India is strict laws and its enforcement.