JUST TWO years after Prime J Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech called for putting an end to the use of single-use plastics, India imposed a ban on 21 such items from July 1, 2022.
While the rollout is a positive step, the Centre's decision not to include packaging plastics, an umbrella term for a host of plastic products used by fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies, is likely to come in the way of Modi's plan to make India single-use-plastic-free by 2022. After all, packaging plastic, which includes everything from plastic bottles and sachets to multi-layered plastic (MLP) packets used for junk food, accounted for 59 per cent of the country's plastic waste generated in 2018-19, according to the plastic industry body PlastIndia Foundation.
The reason the FMCG sector has escaped the ban largely unscathed is the skewed discourse conveniently peddled by the industry. They claim that the problem with plastics is only of waste management and not of material production because it can be recycled, repurposed, burned and buried. This selective approach is unlikely to solve the plastic waste problem that is mounting at an alarming rate.
If the trend continues, greenhouse gas emissions from plastics alone would contribute around 15 per cent of the global carbon budget by 2050, warns a 2019 study published in Nature Climate Change. The lifetime cost to society, the environment and the economy of plastic produced in 2019 alone was US $3.7 trillion-more than India's gross domestic product-estimates a 2021 report by international non-profit wwF. Unless action is taken, this cost is set to double for the plastic produced in 2040, it warns.
Bu hikaye Down To Earth dergisinin September 01, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Down To Earth dergisinin September 01, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
In leading role again
MOVIES AND WEB SERIES ARE ONCE AGAIN BEING SET IN RUSTIC BACKGROUNDS, INDICATING A RECONNECT BETWEEN CINEMA AND THE COUNTRYSIDE
One Nation One Subscription comes at a huge cost
As top US universities scrap big deals with top scientific publishers, India’s ONOS scheme seems flawed and outdated
Return of Rambhog
Bid to revive and sell the aromatic indigenous paddy variety has led to substantial profits for farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Terai region
Scarred by mining
Natural springs of Kashmir drying up due to illegal riverbed mining
Human-to-human spread a mutation away
CANADA IN mid-November confirmed its first human case of avian influenza, with a teenager in the British Columbia being hospitalised after contracting the H5N1 virus that causes the disease. The patient developed a severe form of the disease, also called bird flu, and had respiratory issues. There was no known cause of transmission.
True rehabilitation
Residents of Madhya Pradesh's Kakdi village take relocation as an opportunity to undertake afforestation, develop sustainable practices
INESCAPABLE THREAT
Chemical pollution is the most underrated and underreported risk of the 21st century that threatens all species and regions
THAT NIGHT, 40 YEARS AGO
Bhopal gas disaster is a tragedy that people continue to face
A JOKE, INDEED
A CONFERENCE OF IRRESPONSIBLE PARTIES THAT CREATED AN OPTICAL ILLUSION TO THE REALITY OF A NEW CLIMATE
THINGS FALL APART
THE WORLD HAS MADE PROGRESS IN MITIGATING EMISSIONS AND ADAPTING TO CLIMATE IMPACTS. BUT THE PROGRESS REMAINS GROSSLY INADEQUATE
