Efforts are being undertaken around the globe to handle the issue of plastic waste that ends up in oceans and landfills. On March 13, 2019, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution to seek a solution to the very important issue of plastic waste and make efforts to achieve sustainable development goals. The member states were asked to take serious steps to discourage single-use plastic. It is strange that these products, whose value is measured in minutes to be manufactured without degrading, put the planet into serious danger.
According to United Nations Environment Programme, only 9 per cent of the 9 billion tonnes of plastic waste produced has been recycled. The UNEP also reported that if the same consumption patterns were followed by 2025 there would be 12 billion metric tonnes of plastic litter around the globe that ends up in landfills and other dumping sites. It is pertinent to note that plastic takes more than 400 years to degrade.
Burning plastic of the single-use type is a major source of air pollution. People living close to dumping sites are more vulnerable to respiratory diseases and cancer
On March 28, the EU parliament passed a resolution to implement a ban on single-use plastic products such as straws, plastic bottles and spoons; all these products have a great impact on social life and badly affect marine faunae. European nations aim to attain the goal of ban on single-use plastics by 2021 and get rid of them by 2029.
Following the same patterns of ban on single-use plastic bags and products, policies of plastic waste management have been tripled between 2010 and 2019. As of April 22,2019, 63 countries have introduced such bans on single-use plastics, while 31 countries have imposed a charge per bag. Out of the 192 United Nations member states, 127 have some sort of legislation on single-use plastic.
Plastics are produced by conversion of natural products or by synthesis from primary chemicals such as oil, natural gas and coal. When burnt in open dumping sites, they cause fumes, smoke, smell, heart problems, asthma, nausea and respiratory issues. Burning plastics releases hazardous gases and particulate carbon, which cause air pollution and climate change. Scavengers of plastic put their life at risk. Birds and marine animals eat plastic considering it food. This results in a huge loss of biodiversity.
In Pakistan, burning of single-use plastic is a major source of air pollution. People living close to dumping sites are more vulnerable to respiratory diseases and cancer. In Pakistan, the only solutions to plastic disposal are open burning and open dumping. Our educational institutions, government buildings and markets are no exceptions. This practice causes nothing but misery.
Fortunately, there are also voices for the humanitarian cause of banning single-use plastic. The recent announcement in this regard by the ministry of climate change is a positive development. Minister of Climate Change Zartaj Gul has informed the National Assembly about a plan on the anvil. The plan must be transparent in all manners as plastic bans have multiple implications for various stakeholders.
First, manufacturers of single-use plastic bags and products have a part in the economy. Sudden bans might land them in serious difficulties. Government should meet all stakeholders to finalise a plan for implementation.
Second, there should also be a ban on plastic products that cannot be recycled. Manufacturers should be assigned life-cycle responsibility for their products.
Third, alternatives for single-use plastics bags and other products should be seriously taken into consideration. If people have no alternatives for plastic bags they will continue to use them. Implementation of bans may require some concrete steps by the government.
The government should make the plan transparent to all stakeholders to consider the implications of the great initiative. The government should design a coherent and resource-efficient policy to handle the challenge of plastic disposal.
The writer, a scholar in environmental sociology