Plastics have become a significant part of our daily lives. People consider it easy to carry a plastic bag for taking away items of daily use from nearby shops, locals & vendors. From common poly bags to electric switches, bottles & containers of daily use, all consist of plastic. But do you know that it is equally harmful to our lives as it is usable?
According to national survey data, about 5 trillion plastic bags were consumed by the whole world in 2018. This means that 1 million bags in just a single minute.
Yes, due to extreme & regular use of plastics in the form of shopping bags, vegetable bags, plastic bottles, containers, etc., it has had a terrible impact on the whole environment.
A plastic bag once thrown away on the ground can take 10 to 10000 years to degrade in soil. It is because plastic is non-biodegradable material that doesn’t decompose when exposed to the soil for years. It’s hazardous to the environment as well as the health of human beings. They are a serious threat to our environment as it is one of the major factors in causing pollution.
Not only are plastic bags versatile, but they are also inexpensive, easy to carry, and provide users with multiple other benefits, due to which plastic bags remain the preferred method of handling, carrying, and storing items since their inception.
Plastic bags as they have benefits have many disadvantages that should be banned in countries like:
1. Plastic bags pollute not only our water but also our land
Plastic bags are usually lightweight, and as such, they can travel very long distances by either water or wind. The wind blows these plastic bags and trashes a whole area. These litters get caught up in between trees, fences, and floats in water bodies, thus moving to the world’s oceans.
2. The plastic bags are made from non-renewable sources and on this account, highly contribute to climate change
Most of the plastic is made of polypropylene, which is a material manufactured from petroleum and natural gas. All of the materials are non-renewable fossil fuel-based materials, and through their extraction and even production, greenhouse gases are created, which further contribute to global climate change.
3. A lot of energy is used in producing these bags
The total amount of energy required to drive a car for one kilometer or 0.5 miles is the equivalent energy required to produce nine plastic bags. It is not rational that these non-renewable resources are used to make plastic bags when the typical useful life of each plastic bag is around 12 minutes.
4. Plastic bags do not degrade
In truth, petroleum-based plastic bags never degrade. Instead of the plastic degrading, it is broken down into small tiny pieces that are swept down and end up in the oceans, which are then consumed by wildlife. Currently, approximately 46,000-1,000,000 plastic fragments are floating within every square mile of the globe’s oceans.
5. Plastic bags are toxic
The plastic bags are filled with toxic, harmful chemicals that include estrogen-like substances.
An Environmental Health Perspectives report disclosed that the plastic has hormone-mimicking qualities, and the plastic products released chemicals that mimicked estrogen.
This is dangerous because it means that disrupts how hormones, such as estrogen and others, behave in our bodies, causing a hormonal imbalance that can have severe effects on our health.
6. Plastic bags are harmful to wildlife and marine life
Birds, animals, and marine life such as sea turtles and fish often mistake plastic bags and other plastic materials for food and consume them.
What happens once they consume these plastic materials is that their digestive system gets congested, leading to the development of health infections and death due to suffocation. The animals may also become easily entangled inside the plastic.
According to a report by National Geographic, nearly every single seabird is eating plastic, as plastic that’s thrown away is found in 90 percent of them.
As the Ellen MacArthur Foundation reports, if we don’t slow down the production and waste of plastic bags, the future looks grim: by the year 2050, there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish.
7. Plastic bags are harmful to human health
There are some chemicals from the plastic bags which can disrupt the normal functioning of hormones in the body. Most plastic fragments in the oceans like plastic bags have some pollutants such as PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyl) together with PAHs (Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), which are hormone-disrupting.
Once the marine animals consume these chemicals, they move through the food web then later into the humans who consume fish together with other marine animals. The chemical materials bio-accumulates in the sea animals and fish system as they are exposed to them in the ocean waters.
When humans prepare them, they consume all these chemicals affecting their health. They could develop cancers or other serious conditions.
8. Plastic bags are not easy to recycle
Plastic bags are said to present a significant challenge in terms of recycling. Recycling facilities cannot recycle plastic bags and thus do not accept them. Therefore, the actual recycling rate for plastic bags is around 5%.
9. Plastic carry bags are disposable rather than reusable
Plastic carry bags are designed and manufactured to be disposable rather than reusable. Thin-film plastic carryout bags are less than 2.25 mils in thickness.
These extremely thin and lightweight, plastic carryout bags carry their weight 100 times over, and more. Surveys have shown that a plastic carryout bag is used for approx. 12 minutes and then it is discarded.
Some are reused a few times, but the majority is tossed immediately. 88% of plastic bags are disposed of improperly, and only 12% of plastic carryout bags are recycled according to the EPA.
As a result, if there are plastic bag bans, then the city council can place their focus and attention on getting green bins to various apartment buildings and then meeting waste diversion targets.
Other alternatives to plastic bags
The deliberate use of plastic has increased a major threat to the lives of not only humans but also animals as well as aquatic life. So, why continue using this when we have a lot of other options that can effectively be used in place of plastics.
Let’s know about some of these alternatives given below:
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Canvas Bags
Canvas bags made up of cotton, are more durable that come in different shapes & sizes. Widely used for shopping, these bags are stronger & thicker alternatives to their contemporary plastic bags.
The most interesting thing is that these can be regularly washed & can be reused as many times as possible. You can also make these bags at home by purchasing the material & switching your canvas bag.
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Glass
This is a great alternative option that can disjunctively be used to cut down the use of plastic in our daily lives. Especially usable as household items food containers & bottles, glass is made up of sand, which doesn’t contain any toxic chemicals that could spoil your food as well as body.
Although bottles & containers made of glass are more expensive, yet are worth the price. Hence, it is advised to think of this great alternative to plastic.
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Jute bags, Cotton or Leather bags
These plain & simple jute bags serve as a great alternative to plastic bags. These bags can be used for shopping purposes & while buying vegetables from the market. Also, these are inexpensive ones that can biologically biodegrade in just 1 or 2 years.
Every now & then, plastic is commonly used around the world in almost all homes. The better way to reduce its use is to switch on to the use of non-woven bags like hemp, cotton, leather bags, or even woven fiber bags. Seriously, this is an innovative way to save the environment with the havoc of plastic. These are stronger & durable that can hold much more weight as compared to those plastic bags.
A denim bag, as compared to a plastic bag can uphold materials in much quantity. These bags can be easily washable & kept for a longer time. Using these is more effective than using plastic ones. Moreover, it will not cost you much as it can be prepared by an old piece of your daily wear jeans. You can switch over to these using a pair of your old denim jeans.
As mentioned, plastic bags have an overall lesser impact on the environment as opposed to paper bags. They require less energy to produce, recycle, and transport.
Though we are benefitted from plastic bags in many ways, and their use is highly recommended for your convenience, it is your responsibility to recycle them so that they do not end up in landfills. So, it’s high time to get rid use of single-use plastic bags for the betterment of people’s lives. So try to use fewer plastic bags.