| Living
with plastic the 3R way
By Aaysha Cader
"Whether we like it or not, plastics have become one of the
most versatile materials available to us today," says Sarath
Wijesinghe, who has extensive experience in the field of plastic
packaging. The benefits and uses of plastic are diverse. It is used
to manufacture day-to-day necessities such as containers and plastic
bags and also medical items such as heart valves.
Plastic has
a variety of user-friendly properties: the fact that is cheap, super-tough
and lightweight have made it one of the most resourceful materials
ever invented by man. Yet its most notable property, non-biodegradability,
has been both an asset, as well as a hazard, purely because disposing
of plastic has become a growing problem in our country.
So, what do
we do about a 'hazardous' material that we use every day? The easiest
way of solving the problem would have been to promptly ban plastics
altogether. A little research into the extent of its use in day-to-day
activity would prove that such a solution is impossible. As Anver
Dole, a former past president of the Institute of Chemistry says,
"I don't think we'll find an alternative for plastic in a long
time."
Thus, the option
left, is to tackle the problem. The Sri Lanka Centre for Plastics
in Environment (SLCPE) is a sub-committee formed in January 2003
especially for this purpose, by the Plastic and Rubber Institute
of Sri Lanka. The centre, comprises mainly those involved in the
plastic industry. Its vision is to create a responsible society
that makes plastics work for the betterment of life, through recycling
and substituting scarce natural resources such as forest cover .
The majority
of people are unaware that plastics are recyclable, says Punya Arambewela
of the SLCPE. As a result the centre has formulated an action-oriented
campaign to be implemented over the next four years. SLCPE has set
up a 'hotline' for recycling inquiries under the co-ordination of
Saranath Cooray.
The public
is welcome to call the hotline, after which the centre will delegate
a recycling factory listed in its database to collect any plastic
waste the consumer has to be recycled. The centre has also launched
awareness campaigns and hopes to take the messages across to schools
and other institutions in the future. Recycling of plastic is done
on a very small scale in Sri Lanka, chiefly because the public is
unaware of its existence. In fact there is reason to believe that
recycling factories are short of work as a result of the meagre
amounts of plastic waste that actually reach their plants.
The centre
also hopes to introduce the '3-bin system', which has been successful
in other countries. The collection of plastic waste would then be
a lot easier, and the amount of plastic in garbage dumps would also
decrease considerably.
A senior lecturer
of the University of Sri Jayawardenapura Sudantha Liyanage, advocates
the " 3 R" system: Reduce, Re-use and Recycle. He suggests
that the amount of plastic could be cut down considerably if we
resorted to simple measures such as reusing polythene shopping bags.
As is the case
with any new venture, practical complications have arisen even in
this undertaking. Says Jagath Gunawardena, a well-known environmentalist
and public interest lawyer, "As plastic is light in weight
the people who collect plastic get paid for the weight collected.
The volume of it is great, but the weight is very little."
This may be one of the reasons why the public shy away from this
project. The SLCPE, however, is aware of the problems that may arise,
and is keen to change public perceptions. As Mr Arambewela says,
“It's a big challenge, but it has to start somewhere.”
They take
their own paper and cloth bags
By Marisa de Silva
Want to live in a clean, garbage free environment? Meet Medha
and Harendra Durgabakshi, a couple who not only believe in 'cleaning
up' their act, but have actually done it.
From the time she can remember, Medha's always been conscious
of the environment, and the need to minimize the use of plastic.
Together with her husband she manages their everyday lives
without certain 'essentials' that most of us use without a
second thought. We're talking about plastic bags, better known
as 'siri siri' bags.
It doesn't
seem remotely possible for any Sri Lankan to come out of a
shop, be it a 'Petti Kade' or a supermarket, without having
a dozen or more plastic bags. But Medha and her husband carry
their paper or cloth bags with them when they go shopping
and ask shop assistants to pack their purchases in these instead
of the usual plastic bag.
Sounds
simple, doesn't it? But it hasn't been easy says Medha, because
Sri Lanka seems to be a staunch member of the 'plastic culture'.
There have been times that shops have not been able to meet
their demands for paper bags and the couple have had to carry
their purchases in their hands.
This situation
has caused them much inconvenience and embarrassment as doormen
have stopped them to question if they had in fact paid for
their goods, resulting in the couple having to explain their
policy and show their bill to the manager etc. Many a time,
shopkeepers have tried to coax her into taking her goods back
in plastic bags.
Medha
has, however, stood her ground and insisted that either the
goods be put into the bag she has brought with her or in a
paper or cloth bag. Many shops and shopkeepers later, she
has finally established a good rapport with certain shopkeepers,
who are willing to accommodate her seemingly strange, yet
eco-friendly requests.
Despite
their concern, Medha says that invariably plastic bags do
find their way into their house through visitors etc. When
that happens, she collects them, washes and reuses over and
over again, until they wear out. "I use one bag around
20 times, thereby saving on perhaps 20 extra bags," she
explains.
Another
aspect of their eco friendly stand is the concrete drum in
their backyard which takes their biodegradable garbage. Medha
explained how easy it was to have it fitted. Purchased from
'Sevanath', a shop in Nawala, the drum comes with a guarantee
that it will last a lifetime and never fill up. It has a lid
and is painted green so it looks pleasant and there is no
bad smell whatsoever, she says.
It's
also quite easy to maintain, says Medha. "All you have
to do is put a thick layer of soil at the bottom and then
keep adding raked leaves and grass together with the garbage
and it will automatically transform itself into fertilizer
in a few months time," she adds. Then you could dig up
the fertilizer and use it for your garden and keep using the
drum, says Medha.
As for
the garbage like plastic and cardboard, that don't go into
the drum she puts them into thick plastic bags (that can be
reused) and gives it to the garbage collectors. After they
empty it into their trucks, she asks for the bag to be returned
so she can reuse it.
Harendra
too is on the same wavelength; completely vegetarian as he
doesn't believe in the taking of other lives, he and is also
against plastic. The most effective way to eradicate the plastic
problem is for the government to step in and recognize this
as a serious issue, says Medha. The use of thin-gauged plastic
bags like siri siri bags is completely banned in Mumbai, her
hometown. No shopkeeper is allowed to sell their products
in plastic bags. Similar action should be taken in Sri Lanka,
monitored and followed up strongly.
Making
paper bags out of recycled newspaper, making cloth bags and
the use of thick plastic bags (if at all) should be encouraged
by the government. They should also be made available, she
says. Half the garbage problem would be resolved if the use
of plastic is eliminated, she adds emphatically. And until
such time as the authorities and society accept this, she
and her husband plan to do their bit to change people's thinking. |
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