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Myths about Plastics
 

Point: Plastics causes acid rain

Counter Point: Acid rain---Plastics; not the culprit at all.

Point: Plastic bags contaminate water.

Counter Point: Other materials like metal and glass are also not biodegradable. Composite containers like plastic coated paper cups, tetra packs and bricks also do not biodegrade easily (additional penalty -paper is not recyclable/harmful leachates). Biodegradation in buried land fills is a very slow process -- takes more than 15 years. Anaerobic conditions and methanogenic bacteria, newspapers and telephone directories have been found in landfills even after 40 years. Perishable products like waste food, raked leaves and lumber were found intact in landfills even after 25 years. Industry has already undertaken R&D on bio-degradable applications(e.g. Starch Based Mulching films) in specified areas. Biodegradation is not economically viable for most applications.The solution lies in reusing and recycling plastics into extended life cycle products.

Point: Plastic wastes are also eco-hazardous.

Counter Point: Plastics are crushable and highly compatible; they occupy less space in land fills. Plastic wastes are predominantly eco-neutral (no leachates to contaminate soil or ground water.) Plastic wastes contribute to increasing caloric value of municipal solid waste for incineration (useful source of energy 89 GJ/T, 20 GJ/T) In W. E. plastics wastes provide 30% of energy generated in MSW recovery plants. Plastic films and sheets are used for protective lining of hazardous/chemical landfills to protect surrounding soil and ground water from serious contamination. Plastics have become an important material of construction in environmental engineering.

Point: Paper and cloth bags are better alternatives to plastics bags.

Counter Point: If plastics bags and packaging is replaced with traditional materials like paper, cloth, jute, metal, etc., it would lead to major penalty on the economic system. Phenomenal increase in weight of packaging by 300%, volume of waste by 160%, energy requirements by 110%, cost of packaging by 210%. Hence, there is no eco-viable alternative to plastics in modern society. Paper is not eco-friendly. We need to remind ourselves that making of paper and paper products consumes a lot of chemicals and requires a large amount of water, and leads to severe effluent problems . Besides, paper, unless coated with polymeric materials or wax, cannot withstand wet conditions which are widely prevalent in India, particularly during monsoon periods. Paper making also consumes a lot of energy. In the Indian context the most serious problem is the availability of pulp. Environmental degradation has unquestionably occurred due to pulp manufacturing activities such as commercial forestry. How eco-friendly is paper? Globally,paper is the 5th largest consumer of energy-- 10% of all industry energy consumption and 4% of world consumption,one of the largest users of water and one mt of paper (7000-8000 copies of newspapers) requires felling of 10 to 17 trees. Paper cannot be recycled indefinitely.It can be recycled to a maximum of 4 times. Recycling of paper is also energy intensive and requires chemicals for bleaching and deinking. Rated medium in biodegradability with associated hazards like leachates,paper imposes heavy burden on environment. If we do not ban paper, why ban plastics? The smaller volume of plastic bags can help conserve landfill space. Nothing degrades fast enough to extend the useful lives of modern US landfills:not paper, not plastics, nothing. 30 percent less material is used to produce today's plastic bags than the bags made just 5 years ago. Compared to paper grocery bags, plastic grocery bags consume 40% less energy than paper. (1.34 million MJ vs. 0.58 million MJ for 1 million bags).Plastics generate 80% less solid wastes, produce 70% fewer atmospheric emissions, release upto 94% fewer waterborne wastes.

How eco-friendly is cotton ?

Growing Cotton: Cotton is one of the most chemical intensive crops,it contaminates soil and ground water and requires intensive use of fertilizers and pesticides.

Processing Cotton :Involves bleaching, dyeing, mercerizing, anti-felt finishing, water proofing, silk weighing. Auxiliary agents, Washing or reuse, contaminated effluents, synthetic dyes are not bio-degradable, biodiabolic and 40% remains as waste. Heavy metals like cr, cu, cd enters the food chain: released by clothing, when worn and is absorbed by the skin,detergents, solvents. When you wear cotton, you also wear toxins.

How eco-friendly is jute ?

Retting -Leads to water pollution, air Pollution.Has an adverse effect on biota (e.g. fish culture). Microbes, Organic Acids, methane Gas, High water demand.

Batching -Requires use of batching oil,which leads to contaminated product / content, odor, toxic effluents, not suitable for food products.

Bleaching - Requires of chemicals,which leads to contaminated Effluents/ Water.

Air Pollution - Releases particles/fiber dust, airborne toxic metals and microbes. Affects workers Health (Bisniosis).

Jute processing has an adverse impact on environment.

Point: Plastics deplete resources.

Counter Point: Plastics conserve resources.

Plastics is the most resource efficient packaging material . It has the highest product - package ratio.

To pack 500 G of Coffee
Packaging Material Packaging Material Weight
Glass 500 gm
Tin 130 gm
Plastic 12 gm

Point: Plastics are major sources of solid waste problem.

Counter Point: In developed economies with disposable life-style (e.g. W.Europe) plastics contribute small amount to solid wastes.

To pack 500 G of Coffee
Total solid waste : 2.8 Billion Tonnes
Plastic Waste : 16 Million Tonnes
% to total solid Waste : 0.6%
Municipal solid Waste: 137 Million tons
Plastic in MSW : 11 Million Tons
% Total MSW : 8%

Point: Ragpickers find thin guage plastic bags unviable to collect, causing problems in disposal.

Counter Point: Along with The Ministry of Environment & Forest (MOEF),the industry has taken initiative on the following: Increase the thickness of virgin carry bags to minimum thickness of 20 microns (vs 5 microns at present), increase the thickness of recycled carry bags to minimum thickness of 25 microns. Increased thickness/weight will provide adequate economic incentive to ragpickers to pickup waste bags and channel them into the recycling chain which is well established. Plastic bags are already recycled into useful products like barsati films and mats.

Point: Plastic bags have no reuse.

Counter Point: The thick guage bags are retained by consumers for multiple secondary usage over an extended period of time. Thereafter they are collected and recycled into very useful products like barsati films, nursery bags, etc. For very thin bags, industry has already agreed to increase the minimum thickness to make reuse and recycling viable.

Point: Plastic bags are manufactured by 10,000 unregistered units.

Counter Point: The number of jhabla bag manufacturing units have been highly exaggerated. In Maharashtra, registered and unregistered units total 1000. Maharashtra is a major centre accounting for almost 40% of entire production. On all India basis, this number does not exceed 2500 units. The total number of plastic processing units (all types) in the country is only 13,000. Plastic processing units play a vital role in the national economy, besides major contributions to the exchequer.

Point: Plastic bags are produced in most unsanitary conditions.

Counter Point: Virgin plastic bags are manufactured by high quality organized units whose quality products are also exported to developed countries like Germany and USA. Recycled jhabla bag manufactures are in tiny, cottage, small and unorganized sector. There is a need for the government,MOEF,local authorities to provide adequate infrastructure like recycling zones and parks with common effluent treatment facilities.The industry is committed to upgrade technology for better products and working conditions through ICPE. Industry is willing to work with local authorities in setting up central recycling plants and parks. Let us support industry and enterprise. Let us not kill it by misconceived ideas.

Point: Plastic bags choke drains in monsoons resulting in floods.

Counter Point: The root cause of chaked drains is dumping of all types of waste by the public into open sewers and drains. Plastic bags form a minuscule percentage of the dumped waste.

Point: Plastics are a major source of solid waste problem.

Counter Point: In developed economies with a disposable life-style, plastics contribute only 8% by weight to Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). The rest consists of organic matter, paper, wood , metal glass etc.

Plastics Waste -- the Indian Dimension

 
World ------India
Lowest per capita consumption 18 kg 1.8 kg
Highest plastic recycling
(Industrial & Urban)
15-20% 60%
Plastic in solid waste stream lowest 7% 0.5-4%

Inspite of low waste volumes,the industry has taken initiatives on recycling.

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