Earth vs. Plastics: A Multi-Stakeholder Strategy for Environmental Cleanup

What Does the Facts Say ~  The world produces around 350 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. Approximately 12% is burned and less than 10% is recycled, while the remaining accumulates in landfills, chokes our water bodies, and ends up in the oceans. Plastics take more than 400 years to degrade, which means the menace created due to unsustainable production and consumption practices is here to stay on this planet for a very long time. Life cycle assessment of plastic reveals that petroleum-based plastics can be recycled three to four times — with product quality deteriorating with each cycle — finally finding its way to landfills. Rapid growth in global plastic production didn’t happen until the 1950s. In the next 70 years, annual production of plastics increased nearly 230-fold to 460 million tonnes by 2019. In 2016, the World Economic Forum had estimated that plastic production could triple by 2050, if the businesses continue as usual. Such a trend in plastic production and usage is expected to result in rapid accumulation of plastic waste in landfills, reaching 12 billion tons by the middle of the 21st century. Although the plastic waste produced per person is higher in rich countries, mismanaged waste has been reported to be much higher in low- to middle-income countries due to a lack of awareness and inadequate infrastructure for recycling the waste. As per the Annual Report 2019-20 on the implementation of Plastic Waste Management (PWM Rules 2016), by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) under the Ministry of Environment, Government of India, the quantum of plastic waste generated in India had been recorded at 3.47 million tons per year (roughly 9,857 tons per day) and India ranked the fifth largest generator of plastic waste. Let's Be Little Kinder to Our Mother Earth ~ (Source: Google Images)  The mismanaged waste is finding its way into rivers, lakes, and oceans at a frightening rate. The problem of marine plastic pollution today is a major cause of economic, social, and environmental concern. Coastal regions suffer from the harmful health impacts of plastic pollution and waste brought in by the tides, while the livelihood of the locals is inextricably linked to the fishing and tourism industry. According to conservative forecasts made in March 2020, the direct harm to the blue economy of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was expected to be $2.1 billion per year, a significant financial cost to be borne due to marine plastic pollution. Almost 70% of the plastic in the oceans comes from land-based sources through rivers and coastlines. The other estimated 30% comes from marine sources such as fishing nets, lines, ropes, and abandoned vessels. The ‘All Goa Small Scale Responsible Fisheries Union’, in a recent representation to the Environment Ministry, highlighted the detrimental impact of plastic waste on fishing activities and the overall health of the local rivers and the Arabian Sea, and an urgent need to ban plastic in the region. Riverbeds covered with plastics disrupt fish spawning activities. These concerns need to be addressed with actions that have immediate and long-term impacts to prevent plastics and other waste from polluting the rivers and oceans, as well as ways to clean up the existing waste. What actions are possible? It's Our Responsibility More Than Ever~  (Source: Google Images)  The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) have sought to focus attention on the issue of marine plastic pollution. Specifically, SDG 14, which promotes the preservation and sustainable utilization of oceans, seas, and marine resources, is spearheading an all-encompassing strategy to address the issue of marine plastic pollution. SDGs 11 and 12, which aim to create inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities and sustainable consumption and production patterns, respectively, support a coordinated effort to improve waste management and eradicate plastic pollution. An effective policy will require multi-stakeholder collaboration and be supported by responsible business and non-governmental organization efforts. By utilizing cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, satellite imaging, drones, citizen science, and waste flow modeling, the UN's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) "Closing the Loop" project helps cities measure and monitor plastic waste and identify the "source to sea" movement of plastic leakage into the marine environment from cities. Finding the areas where plastic leaks can help governments and organizations create policies that work and take concrete steps to solve the plastic problem. At the corporate level, producer-extended responsibility—in which producers are in charge of gathering and recycling items they introduce to the market—is essential. To replace single-use plastics, product designers must prioritize the use of non-plastic, recyclable, or biodegradable materials. To do this, the plastics value chain must adopt circular and sustainable economic processes. In addition to encouraging the use of recycled and reused plastics and alternative materials, price structures should take into account the negative effects of plastic usage. Due to the significant oil subsidies used in their production, plastics are cheap since there are fewer financial incentives to utilize recycled plastic. To minimize plastic waste annually, it is equally important to promote individual action to limit plastic pollution. Encouraging a plastic-free workplace will motivate people to switch from single-use plastic products to reusable ones or single-use, more environmentally friendly options. The collaborative efforts towards a plastic-free world can be accelerated by public awareness programs that explain how people's behaviors contribute to marine plastic pollution or how they may participate in beach and river clean-ups; they can also encourage the usage of disposable plastic bags. Most critically, reducing plastic pollution requires better waste management techniques. It's a manageable issue, and improving the way plastic garbage is managed will significantly lessen the annoyance. There would still be a sizable amount of plastic entering the rivers and oceans even if global use were cut in half. Embracing circularity in the management of plastic trash while involving many stakeholders and comprehending the connections for integrated solutions is crucial. By extending the life of products and moving trash from the end of the supply chain to the beginning, the circular economy creates value. To maintain resource sustainability, a shift from a linear to a circular economy is necessary. Reusing and recycling resources enables them to be used more effectively and multiple times. “It looks big, Earth. But there are lots of us on here (7,523,458,567 and counting) so be kind.” —Oliver Jeffers