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| Sunday, 5 December 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Versatile and vilified by Rohan Mathes Plastic has become indispensable to the world. A global trend has emerged to produce hi-tech, sophisticated and eye-catching plastics that have come to stay, virtually in a 'plastic age'.
Plastics are super-tough, robust and durable but lightweight and therefore saves transportation fuel costs significantly. They conserve natural resources such as capital and energy, like in aseptic packaging of food in barrier packaging films which render refrigeration obsolete. Edible oils and milk are packaged in flexible packages, thus eliminating the use of metal, paper, wood and glass containers which consume more energy and therefore more fossil fuels. Today, the food and beverage industry is increasingly using Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) to replace glass as the material for containers due to its inherent qualities like strength, safety, cost-effectiveness, lightweight, unbreakableness, durability and its environment-friendliness. Potable water in PET bottles reduces water-borne diseases as well. Environmental, health hazard Nonetheless, the same 'Plastics' which was once hailed as the 'wonder material' and the prodigy of the century, is now being viewed as a serious threat to the environment and a health hazard not only to mankind but many other living organisms, including wildlife and marine environments.
Essentially, its non-biodegradable nature has changed the mindsets and attitudes of leading environmentalists, educationists, health authorities and politicians among others, to call for a total ban or restricted usage, and its replacement by alternative materials such as jute, paper, wood, glass, metals, leather and cloth. Renowned Environmentalist and 'Zonta Woman of Achievement' Award Winner 2004 for the environment, Dr. Ajantha Perera in her relentless campaign against the use of the 'sili sili' bag, consistently stresses the 'sili sili' bag would never decompose. "It never decays. Thinner the gauge, it will only break into pieces easily, but would never form a part of the soil as a bio-degradable banana leaf does, when it decays", she opines. There is growing concern now, over the issue of conventional plastics being associated with re-productive problems in both human and wildlife. A rise in breast cancer and genital abnormalities have been recorded. Dioxin, a highly carcinogenic and toxic by-product in the manufacturing and burning process of plastics, especially PVC, is believed to be released to the atmosphere. Serial killer Plastic bags immersed in water could be mistaken for jelly fish by birds, whales, seals and other marine life and become 'serial killers', as they do not decompose even after the living beings do. The bags are repeatedly released to the environment intact, to be the bait of another hapless organism. New design In this scenario, designing eco-friendly, bio-degradable plastics is of paramount importance now. Partially bio-degradable plastics have been developed and used already. Completely biodegradable plastics based on renewable starch rather than petrochemicals have also been developed and are in the threshold of commercialisation. Dr. Ajantha Perera however, holds a pessimistic view of the new developments. "This would not work, as it would not be cost-effective in the long-term. Therefore, the chances of its success is very remote. They say they are adding an additive, but it would be so expensive and uneconomical to the consumer. Polythene manufacturers themselves are sceptical on this issue", she says. Consultant to the Development of the Plastics and Rubber Institute of Sri Lanka, Merrilene Peramune is also of the view that degradable plastics is not a solution to post consumer plastics waste management, on the premise that it may cause further environmental hazards such as the depletion of soil fertility and pollution of waterways. Albeit its commercial use, a considerable amount of resources and media time has been expended on promoting a 'biodegradable additive' to the local market. unfortunately, the degradable additive requires light and heat to degrade the product. Therefore, it is quite unlikely that it would prevent the clogging of waterways, as once the bags (sili sili) and other plastic containers get into the water, they would not be exposed to sunlight. Peramune holds the same view as Dr. Ajantha Perera that Plastics, being a by-product of petroleum, and an inert material, degradation only reduces the product into smaller, less visible particles, but would not become integrated back into the soil. There is a real danger of smaller particles mixing with the soil to form a new and more dangerous pollutant. Therefore, the Industrial Technology Institute of the Ministry of Science and Technology has not yet endorsed degradable plastics. Waste solutions , management Nevertheless, it is a tragedy that people have failed to understand and recognise that it is not the product per se which has predicted much doom to planet earth. Ironically, they have failed to realise that it is our own garbage culture and the unconcerned 'use and throw' or littering that has to carry the onus and take the blame. The Plastics and Rubber Institute of Sri Lanka, in recognition of this growing crisis, has set up the Sri Lanka Centre for Plastics in Environment (SLCPE), with the main objective of channelling post consumer plastics waste out of the environment and back into the factories, by the incorporation of a mechanism for the sorting, collection and recycling activities. The SLCPE educates consumers, local authorities, manufacturers and the legislators, on the need to improve the segregation and collection of post consumer plastics waste. They are of the view that this menace could be minimised or averted if not totally eradicated, with proper plastic waste management techniques. They are now working closely with the Ministry of Environment and the Central Environmental Authority (CEA), to implement a nation-wide plastics collection system. The SLCPE over the last two years, has been engaged in waste collection and recycling. Recycling demands responsible post-consumer plastics waste disposal and garbage handling, a national issue which has a long way to go. The SLCPE advocates the practice of the '3-Bin System' where polythene bags, especially the 'sili sili' variety, water bottles and all other disposable plastic items could be collected in one 'Bin' and despatched for re-cycling at a reasonable price. The Centre educates people on using the 3-bin system to sort household waste at source and minimise the quantum of post consumer plastics waste which gets into the garbage, as in the developed world, where the garbage is sorted at household level. Clean plastics and packaging are collected from households and channelled to the recycling industry. The SLCPE also promotes the '3-R' policy in a 'Reduce, Re-use. and Re-cycle' campaign which is already in operation in Kandy, Galle, Kegalle and Colombo. There are over 100 plastic re-cycling companies already operating in Colombo and its suburbs. According to recent Municipal Solid Waste Database statistics, the plastics in the stock of garbage, though highly conspicuous, is presumed to be only around 4 to 7 per cent. The root cause of the problem is diagnosed as a lack of adequate and specified garbage dumping-sites for the people, and the non-collection of garbage from the collection points by the relevant local authorities, on a regular basis. Consequently, the environment is polluted due to the displacement and scattering of garbage by animals and birds. The per capita plastic consumption in Sri Lanka is only 4 kilograms, vis-a-vis its European counterparts' consumption of 80 to 100. The global average lies around 19. Nonetheless, littering of plastic matter in Europe is minimal if not totally eradicated. But ironically in Sri Lanka, plastics littering and pollution, particularly by the 'sili sili' bag is rampant and has reached phenomenal proportions, despite its recyclable properties. Trends in recycling The plastic industry in the developed world has realised the potential and the need to have environmentally acceptable modes for re-cycling plastic wastes and has set out targets and missions. The Plastic Waste Management Institute of Japan, the European Centre for Plastics in the Environment, the Plastic Waste Management Task Force in Malaysia, manufacturers, civic authorities, environmentalists and the general public have focused their attention to the need of the hour, in ensuring conformity to certain accepted guidelines, standards and norms, inclusive of a code of conduct. For incineration In instances where plastic wastes are not re-cycled, they could be land-filled or incinerated under certain conditions. Environmentally sound conditions should be ensured for the incineration of plastics, under high temperature and the appropriate abatement techniques for the escape of blue gases. Incineration for energy recovery should be planned as plastics waste has caloric value even higher than that of coal. Incineration of plastics waste for energy recovery could also be viewed as a viable technical option. The onus then is on the, consumer and the State through legislation, to ensure that together we learn to live and act with due respect towards our environment. |
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