News Highlight
The Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, were announced by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on August -2021 to ban Single use plastics.
Key Takeaway
- Since July 2022, India has banned the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of single-use plastic (SUP) items with low utility and high litter potential.
What are single-use plastics?
- Single-use plastics, often also referred to as disposable plastics, are commonly used for plastic packaging and include items intended to be used only once before they are thrown away or recycled.
Status of plastic pollution in India
- The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB):
- CPCB estimated the generation of 15,342 tonnes of plastic waste in the country every day, out of which 9,205 tonnes were reported to be recycled, leaving 6,137 tonnes uncollected and littered.
Types of plastic
- Thermoset or thermosetting plastics:
- Once cooled and hardened, these types of plastic retain their shapes and cannot return to their original form. They are hard and durable. Thermosets can be used for auto parts, aircraft parts and tyers.
- Thermoplastics:
- These are less rigid than thermosets. Thermoplastics can soften upon heating and return to their original form. These are easily moulded and extruded into films, fibres, and packaging.
- Examples include polyethene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Types of thermoplastic
- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE or PET):
- This plastic is one of the most commonly used on the planet.
- E.g. all plastic bottles and containers.
- High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE):
- This plastic is used for a wide variety of products.
- For example, HDPE is excellent for laundry, shampoo, conditioner, household cleaning products, motor oil, antifreeze, and recycling bins.
- Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) :
- Due to its versatile nature, PVC is used extensively across various industrial, technical and everyday applications, including widespread use in building, transport, packaging, electrical/electronic and healthcare applications.
- Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE):
- It is a thermoplastic made from the monomer ethylene.
- Packaging and containers made from LDPE make up about 56% of all plastic waste, 75% of which comes from residential households.
- LDPE is complicated to recycle and has shown signs of releasing nonylphenol when sunlight exposes it.
- Polypropylene (PP):
- It is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications.
- It has a high heat tolerance and, as such, does not seem to leach many of the chemicals that other plastics do.
- Examples include bottle tops, bottles, and fittings.
- Polystyrene or Styrofoam (PS):
- It is a plastic that is naturally transparent when it is developed. As a result, it is used in all types of applications, both as a solid material to be used with larger systems and as a foam material that can be applied in several different industries.
- It is widely employed in the food-service industry as rigid trays and containers, disposable eating utensils, and foamed cups, plates, and bowls.
Causes of Plastic Pollution
- Plastic bags from shopping:
- Many people regularly shop, which means that the amount of plastic bags introduced into the environment increases faster. Since most of the plastics are also low cost and thin, they can only be used a couple of times before they tear.
- Plastic Toys:
- Most toys are usually made of plastic. This is a safety measure because kids can easily injure themselves with metallic toys.
- Apart from safety, it is also cheap.
- Failure to recycle:
- More than 15,000 tons of plastic waste is generated in India daily, with around 6,000 tons of uncollected and littered plastic.
- India currently recycles only five per cent of the plastic we produce. The failure to recycle is one of the main reasons why plastic pollution is such a significant concern.
- Using Plastic Disposables:
- People who host parties and use plastic disposable cups, plates, forks, and knives are the main culprits here.
- As much as they make work easier by eliminating the need to wash utensils after the party, it’s also detrimental to the environment.
Effects of Plastic Pollution
- Land Pollution:
- The wind carries and deposits plastic from one place to another, increasing the land litter.
- Air Pollution:
- Burning plastic leads to contamination of the atmosphere due to the release of poisonous chemicals, resulting in air pollution.
- Health:
- Plastics cause severe damage to human health, such as cancers, congenital disabilities, immune system problems, and childhood developmental issues.
- Marine populations:
- Thousands of seabirds, sea turtles, and other marine mammals are killed each year after ingesting plastic or getting entangled.
- Natural resources:
- Plastic degrades the water quality, leading to groundwater pollution.
Government Initiatives
- Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021:
- It prohibited manufacturing, importing, stocking, distributing, selling, and using plastic carry bags whose thickness is less than 75 microns.
- Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2022
- Under it, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a producer’s responsibility for the environmentally sound management of the product until the end of its life.
- The guidelines provide a framework to strengthen the circular economy of plastic packaging waste, promote the development of new alternatives to plastic packaging, and give businesses the next steps to move towards sustainable plastic packaging.
- Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016:
- The minimum thickness of plastic carry bags has been increased from 40 microns to 50 microns.
- Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules 2018:
- The amended rules show that the phasing out of Multi-layered Plastic (MLP) is now applicable to MLP, which are “non-recyclable, or non-energy recoverable, or with no alternate use.”
The challenges of banning single-use plastic
- Increased Usage of Other Plastic Bags:
- When plastic bags given for free in stores are banned, there may be an increase in other types of plastic bags people can purchase to fulfill the same jobs. Purchased plastic bags are thicker and pose a bigger threat to the environment.
- The cost would hurt the poor:
- Once the free plastic bags are completely banned, people will have to purchase reusable bags, and as the demand increases, it will burden the poor.
- Economic Repercussions:
- Banning plastic bags may have a negative impact on employment.
- For example, stores in areas that did not allow plastic bags saw a 10 per cent drop in employment in Los Angeles.
Way forward:
- Waste-to-energy:
- Waste-to-energy (WTE) plants that incinerate municipal wastes to produce energy have been hailed as a solution to the huge problem.
- Legislation to Ban Plastic:
- Maharashtra, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, Delhi, and Chandigarh have enacted total bans on plastic bags.
- Best practices:
- The district administration of Kannur(Kerala) initiated a plastic-free campaign to discourage the use of plastic carry bags and disposable items. And it became India’s first plastic-free district.
- Awareness and education:
- The most effective strategy to reduce the use of plastic bags and plastic waste is to bring about behavioral changes in people.
- Alternatives:
- Promote alternatives to single-use plastics such as cloth bags, paper bags, and biodegradable plastics.
Content Source: The Hindu