Say No to Plastics and save our planet
The innovation of plastic was one of the most revolutionary inventions in the world. Its low production and purchase cost, versatility made it so popular. This same utilitarian product is now one of the biggest hazards faced not only by humanity but also by all the living creatures on the planet. The whole ecosystem is shaken by this dangerous monster. The quantity of plastic used by us in a year is quite enormous. We are finding microplastic pieces in our waterways, the food we eat, and the water we drink.
Why we should say No to Plastics
- Almost 12.7 million plastic is reaching the ocean per year.
- According to a survey taken in 2016, by 2050 the quantity of plastic in the ocean will be more than the amount of living things in there.
- All these facts become more frightening when we come to know about the time it takes for a plastic object to degrade. It takes more than 1000 years for plastic to degrade or worse they are non-degradable.
- 88 – 95% of this plastic entering the ocean comes from just 10 rivers around the world
- In every minute 2 million plastic bags are bought by consumers in the world. The light weighted shopping bags floats along and become a threat to humanity. Up to 30 million plastic bags enter the environment each year
- The plastic straws which are thrown around carelessly can cause more harm than we think. About 500+ million straws are used in America alone per day. These straws which are not easily degradable can break into small piece, move around, and reach each everywhere including the sea and land.
- A huge number of plastic bottles are used around the world each day.1 million plastic bottles are brought every minute around the world. 7.38 billion bottles of water are purchased every year in China. (2016). Ironically, in this same world, 650 million people yearn for water.
Do think about a day in your life? Our daily life is so much link or attaches to plastic usage. Starting from the toothbrush there are a whole lot of plastic objects that we use daily. Razors, cloth hangers, food containers, if smokers, the plastic lighter you use, food containers and plastic bottles that we receive along with the food we order, like this there are umpteen ways in which plastic reaches us. We are using this easily carriable, cheap material at the cost of our own lives and of the whole world. It is high time we start our war against this.
It should start with us, from us. The revolutionary step to a plastic-free environment should start from our homes, our office, our peer groups and most importantly from ourselves.
Start from US
What are we to do? As a social being, we are responsible to kick start a change. From this very second onwards let us start our revolution. To begin with, start from our daily life, start from our family, start from our friends’ circles, start from our small gatherings, start from our offices, start from our parties, and extend to our bigger society.
Let us stop using plastic toothbrush and razors and try the bamboo brushes and sustainable metal razors available in the market. About one-fourth of the world’s population now uses and almost 75% of the men around the globe shave daily. Think about the plastic razors that are thrown around daily.
Visit our kitchen and try to replace at least 50% of the plastic containers with glass or other sustainable contains.
Take a bold decision that, now onwards we use only glass or sustainable food containers to carry food to our schools or workplaces. Remind those easy-to-use containers cause more harm than its use.
Stop using straws. If we can drink tea, coffee without a straw why can’t we do the same with juices and sodas?
Let us also decide not to receive take away food in plastic containers – at least not take the plastic utensils on food takeaway.
The shopping bags we consume because of their easy availability and cheapness jeopardize the balance of our ecosystem. Let us carry with us cloth or paper bags while shopping. These little initiatives on our part can pave way for big changes.
6 Most Common Sources of Plastic Pollution ( References – https://www.treehugger.com/ )
1.) Food Wrappers & Containers (31.14% of pollution in the environment, by unit count)
2.) Bottle & Container Caps (15.5%)
3.) Plastic Bags (11.18%)
4.) Straws and Stirrers (8.13%)
5.) Beverage Bottles (7.27%)
6.) Takeout Containers (6.27%)
Let us fight against plastic not only for us but also for future generations. Let us minimize the use of plastic and shout out to the world: “ Say No to Plastics. “
All the best