Take a moment and try to remember about all the plastic products you have used, bought, recycled or thrown away in this hour-day-week-year-lifetime! All those water bottles, shampoo bottles, plastic glasses, straws, packaging, plastic bags… the list is never ending.Now picture your parents, grandparents, cousins, friends, neighbours, colleagues etc. Every piece of plastic that has been created STILL exists on this Earth. It is estimated that the yearly global production of plastic weighs more that the total weight of the human population which is MORE THAN 32,00,00,000 METRIC TONS! Need reference? A Boeing 757-200 aircraft weights about 100 metric tons.
That’s TOO MUCH of plastic.
What is worse is that about half of this is single use plastic i.e. disposables like plastic straws, plastic glasses, packaging etc. The plastic that is being produced isn’t even being used properly. It is literally used just once. (Single-Use, eh?)
As a society how are we so negligent? Or we are just unaware?
When did we become so irresponsible that we started pilling our planet with garbage just for our comfort?The comfort of using polythene bags instead of remembering to carry our own reusable bag.The comfort of picking stuff off the shelf instead of filling our own containers.The comfort of sucking liquid through a plastic straw instead of sipping it from a cup. Majority of the people don’t even realise that this is a problem. The convenience and comfort of plastic is ruining our beaches, oceans and our mother earth.
Quite a few of the world’s renowned beaches are now ruined as a result of the plastic that has washed up on the shores. In many areas the various water ways carry water contaminated by toxins present in plastic.
The marine life is mistaking plastic particles floating in our oceans as food. They are getting tangled in plastic and eventually dying. Many of them have microplastics in their system. Eventually, we are the ones who are consuming our own plastic waste. The microplastics that are eaten by aquatic life are nothing but broken-down plastic straws, plastic water bottles, garbage bags and what not. So much for comfort, eh? This is worrisome not just for marine life, but for human health too. Microplastics become very toxic, even quicker when exposed to sun and heat. Plastic is almost like sponge for harmful chemicals like DDT (the insect killer we humans use) and PCBs which are very harmful to our bodies. It is believed that consuming such microplastics are a leading cause for cancer.
It is Time to Start Loving Our Earth
Let us take baby steps in our lives to combat this global problem and stop ruining our only planet. The uses of plastic are not worth the damage. There are several ways to avoid plastic, so what are you waiting for?
Promise yourself to be more aware of what you purchase next time you go grocery shopping or any type of shopping for that matter. Support eco-friendly businesses. Shop from local markets. Eat food that is least processed from the time it is harvested like fresh fruits and vegetables.
As individuals, we have to believe that our individual choices make an effect because they do! If 8 billion people take baby steps, collectively it will make a huge difference and lead us towards a safer, cleaner and better tomorrow.The root cause of change is nothing else but individuals like you and me.
Feel free to write to us if you any suggestions on how to reduce the amount of plastic used in our daily lives.