Prof Mithilesh Kumar Sinha
Department of Economics, NU, Lumami
We are now facing our own created-problems of environmental degradation, fragile eco system and human-kind damage though each year over the world each country has been observing World Environment Day on 5th June for 50 years. This year the world on 5th June is observing World Environment Day on the theme “Beating Plastic Pollution” that was the same in 2018 when India was the host nation. Despite celebrating every year, the World Environment Day, we are still there where we were five years ago. This proves the style of human beings “High Talking Simple Doing”. We talk much but in action do less to check plastic pollution.
No doubt, the environmental impact of plastic pollution goes beyond the harm caused to individual animals. Plastic debris can damage fragile ecosystems, and the chemicals released by degrading plastic can contaminate soil and water. This can have a ripple effect on the entire food chain. The most visible impacts of plastic debris are the ingestion, suffocation and entanglement of hundreds of marine species. Keeping these adverse impacts in mind, planners, leaders every year give call to the entire world to check plastic consumption but they never give call for reducing the production of plastic. Globally production of plastics has risen almost 200 times in seven decades—the average male life expectancy. It was two million tonnes in 1950 and, in 2021, it had risen to more than 390 mt.
Indeed, by 2050, we are expected to produce almost 4 times the plastics we do today. And going by the scenario today, the OECD projects, plastic waste will almost triple by 2060, with half of all plastic waste still ending up in landfills and less than a fifth recycled.
India is the second-largest plastic polluter after the US. It produces 3.5 million tonnes of plastic annually, with 25,490 per capita, according a report, India generates around 3.4 million tonnes (MT) of plastic waste. According to the report, which has been prepared in association with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Praxis Global Alliance, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu together contribute 38 per cent to the total plastic waste that is generated in India. As per a report of Marico Innovation Foundation, over a five-year period, the plastic consumption in the country has risen at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.7 per cent to 14 MT in the financial year 2016-17 to 20 million tonnes in 2019-20.
Every minute, the equivalent of one garbage truck of plastic is dumped into our ocean. India releases 1.5 crore tons of waste into the Indian Ocean each year and according to a study by Phew Trusts (2022), the plastic waste entering oceans is at an annual rate of 11 metric tonnes, and the massive amount of persistent plastic in the marine debris harms the coastline and marine ecosystems, making the Indian ocean the second most polluted ocean in the world.
Regular beach clean-up and awareness programmes should be conducted instead of annual ones. Many states claim Single Use Plastic above 50 microns is banned, but on the ground, the ban is not effective. Steps can be taken to execute such legislations.
As the citizen we can help stop plastic pollution by doing our part to reduce our reliance on single-use plastics. This means avoiding plastic straws, water bottles, and shopping bags whenever possible. We can also recycle the plastic we do use, and support businesses that are working to reduce their plastic footprint.
Finally, we can spread the word about the issue of plastic pollution and its solutions to help raise awareness.
