Banning Manufacture and Sale of Plastic Bags

Layout 1The 20th century saw the rise and rise of plastic bags distributed either free of cost or on nominal payment, with the merchandise at shops, grocery stores, pharmacies and other commercial outlets all over the world. However, the dawn of the 21st century marked the beginning of the steep decline in the bag’s fortunes or supremacy as one of the most popular tools of utility for the customer as well as the seller. The innovation of plastic carrier bags and one-time use bags made a big splash in the way shopping was done like never before. The plastic bags were found very useful, versatile, and economical for the carrying of purchases home, easy transportation, and convenient storage. They were considered durable, suitable for carrying heavy purchases, hygienic, waterproof, sleek and attractive with bright and animated logos and names of stores printed that endeared them to the consumer by their immediate visual appeal.

Myriad were the uses which an Indian housewife could think of putting the bag to, ranging from wrapping her office-going husband’s lunch, to sending samples of some delectable culinary invention of hers, a compact disc of her very favourite ghazal maestro or a handy potato peeler bought at some charity bazaar or an exotic souvenir bought on her latest holiday trip abroad, to a dear friend living a couple of blocks away or soiled clothes for washing to the cleaners. Identify a possible use for any odd object lying around at home begging for your attention and there it was, the humble plastic bag at your service. If you could not think of possible use for the thing that you do not want to throw away in haste, lest it should be badly wanted at a later date, there was nothing too much to worry about. Just put it in a plastic bag waiting at your elbow for such occasions and shove it away in the storage compartment for a leisurely review on a later date.

After the lapse of considerable spells of time, when you open on a lazy sunny afternoon such packages of odds and ends kept in the loft, neatly wrapped in faithful plastic bags, the child in you starts hoping against hopes to discover some treasured and useful stuff that you had always wanted! You open the bag and find some photo frame made of cardboard by your child with a lovely birthday greeting scrawled all over. Oh, joy! You are transported back in time and end up spending the rest of the afternoon mooning over pleasant memories of the days gone by! The object that brought warm memories back had been preserved in its pristine glory by the humble and self-effacing plastic bag.  Ever ready for use, the bag became part of every householder’s day-to-day life and was considered a boon that made one’s life easier. Besides, plastic grocery bags reportedly take 70% less energy to manufacture than the paper grocery bags. Therefore, the plastic bag is resource-efficient, comes practically free of cost and involves no maintenance despite its utility and longevity for extended periods of time. However, the versatility of the champion bag was marred by a flipside.

Flipside of the Versatile Plastic Bag    

The problem with the plastic bag is about its disposal once it has served its originally intended purpose of manufacture as well as the numerous other purposes that ingenious housewives and their ilk think of putting it to, although its life seems endless or interminable. Litterbugs cause mayhem when they thoughtlessly throw the worn out plastic bag away anywhere and everywhere. Roadsides and public places become an eyesore with the unseemly sight of plastic bags, especially the single-use ones, dispensed by chemists, fruit and vegetable vendors or kiosks with odd purchases, flying around in sudden gusts of wind. Such bags consigned to garbage dumps tend to be airborne at the faintest trace of wind, thanks to the aerodynamic attribute that went into its making, albeit unintentionally. And in the course of their aimless drifting around in open places, they may occasionally wrap themselves around the face of an unwary biker or scooterist passing by, momentarily throwing him off balance, which may lead to nasty traffic accidents. Pedestrians are not spared either. Unwanted plastic bags strewn around, sidle up to them when there is a sandstorm and refuse to go away.

Thus, the general public has no end of problems with the ubiquitous plastic bag that makes its nuisance value felt in several other ways. A carelessly flung plastic bag clogs the drain or gets stuck in the sewer, resulting in flooding during a downpour. Clogged drains and sewers breed mosquitoes that cause malaria. There have also been weird and freak incidents of babies and toddlers putting on a plastic bag over their head, unwittingly or for fun, and suffocating to death. The sight of stray cattle munching away plastic bags, which had once contained eatables and subsequently landed in garbage dumps, is not uncommon. The poor animals end up with serious health issues, with the plastic waste that had got into their digestive system not finding it possible to exit their body, having to be surgically removed. Reports estimate that around 20 cows die per day in India as a result of ingesting plastic bags. Veterinarians are mute witnesses to such cases of random cruelty to animals, caused by the careless disposing off of plastic bags by thoughtless persons with no civic responsibility.

Layout 1Threat to Environment

Plastic bags also tend to trap birds in flight. When birds find plastic bags blown on to trees, they mistake them for some exotic fruit and merrily eat them to disastrous consequences. When the bags find their way to the rivers and the sea, they become a hazard to the marine life. According to the UN Environment Program, scientists estimate that every square mile of the oceans contains approximately 46,000 pieces of plastic floating in them. Around 10% of the plastics produced every year worldwide ends up in the sea, with 70% of it finding its way to the ocean floor, where it will likely never degrade or, in any case, not earlier than a minimum of 500 years. The Ocean Conservancy’s annual International Coastal Cleanups rate plastic bags consistently among the top ten pieces of trash collected on beaches across the globe. The distressingly slow decomposition rate of plastic bags leaves them to drift on the ocean for years on end.

Sea creatures like sea turtles, seals and whales that feed on fish often mistake the glazy plastic bag for jellyfish and devour it, which results in disastrous consequences. According to an estimate of the World Wide Fund for Nature, every year over 100,000 whales, seals and turtles die after eating plastic bags or because of getting trapped in them. The media has reported several instances over the years when whales have died because of being unable to eat after ingesting plastic bags, apparently mistaking them for jellyfish. Whales cannot digest plastic bags; furthermore, the chemicals react very negatively in their internal organs. Suffice it to quote a report of 4th January 2015, from the Virgin Islands Conservation Society, to get an idea of the extent of the menace of plastic bags (and other plastic waste) that pollute the oceans:
“A recent Scientific American article stated the world creates 260 million tons of plastic each year, and much of it winds up in the oceans. We can do our part by not using plastic shopping bags.”

Predicament of Civic Authorities

Civic authorities are often clueless about the proper disposal of the plastic waste. The plastic bag, which was considered a boon to man’s modern lifestyle on its advent, has now turned out to be a bane. The bags are made of polyethylene with the use of natural gas and oil. Manufacture of vast quantities of plastic bags puts considerable pressure on the extraction of precious non-reusable energy sources such as natural gas and oil. According to an estimate by the Wall Street Journal, 100 billion plastic bags are used and thrown away every year in the US alone, which requires 12 million barrels of oil to manufacture. According to China Trade News, three billion plastic bags are used daily in that country. About two million plastic bags are used around the world every minute and over one trillion single-use plastic bags are used every year, in terms of an estimate by the Earth Policy Institute.

Non-biodegradable

Furthermore, plastic bags are not biodegradable. Although the bags are recyclable, which is the safest and most ideal way for disposing off the worn out bags, in reality they end up in landfills where it takes them hundreds of years to break down, thus making it the kind of stuff that an environmentalist’s nightmares are made of. An estimated 3,960,000 tons of plastic bags, besides sack and wraps, are produced annually out of which 90% are discarded. When plastics break down, normally they don’t biodegrade but they tend to photodegrade, which means the materials tend to break down to smaller fragments and readily soak up toxins. They then contaminate soil, waterways, and animals upon digestion, according to Earth911, the international organization that connects people with information about helping the earth and also enable them to reduce their daily waste.

The Only Way Out

Plastic bags are made of grade 2 and grade 4 plastic. Easily recyclable, these are often turned into composite lumber whereas a variety of products could easily be fabricated. Until the international scientific community comes up with a suitable alternative, recycling is the only way for effectively disposing off worn out plastic bags. However, the BBC and the CNN estimate that only 3-5% bags produced are recycled.

Worldwide Situation  

The menace of the non-biodegradable plastic bags being a global phenomenon, governments all over the world have been taking steps to tackle the situation depending on the seriousness of the situation on the ground. Some countries like Bangladesh, Rwanda, China, Taiwan and Macedonia, have already imposed a total ban on lightweight bags. Some others have followed suit by either charging customers for lightweight bags or generating taxes from the stores who sell them. In the United States, last year California became the first and only state to ban the use of plastic bags. Otherwise, only some cities and counties of that country have outlawed their use.

Plastic Bags in India as of Now

On account of the practically non-existent recycling facilities, India has already banned plastic bags with the thickness of less than 20 microns. The States of Goa and Delhi and the city of Mumbai have also banned bags, but with different specifications. The problem with the Legislations of these bans is with regard to their implementation.

What Should the Government Do?

From the customers’ point of view, the alternatives to plastic bags that are currently available in India are restricted to paper bags or jute bags. As the production costs of these bags coupled with the transportation costs are considerably higher than those of the plastic bags, the possibility of their catching up with the latter and ending their monopoly seems farfetched. Nevertheless, the days of the one-use plastic bags are practically over. The need for the proscribing of its use has been increasingly felt especially in view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. But more and more sustained efforts are called for on the part of the Central and State Governments as well as NGOs, and other pressure groups like the student community, sportspersons, artists, media and the like to create awareness among the people of the country to the problematic situations that arise due to the continued use of plastic shopping bags, causing inestimable damage to the environment, hygiene, safety of birds, livestock and marine life, and to the uninterrupted flow of rivers and other water bodies.

People need to realize that environmental pollution is a time-bomb ticking away while much more needs to be done than debating the need to ban plastic bags. On the part of the government, there should be a ban on all plastic shopping bags; and such ban should be implemented in all seriousness. The problem should be tackled at its very source by ensuring that the bags are not produced on pain of closure of the production unit. Offending companies and stores should be levied hefty penalties and repeat offenders handed out exemplary punishment. There should be laws with teeth to prevent breaches of pollution control. Simultaneously, the government should make ample provision for the setting up of recycling units where members of the public could have their worn out plastic bags recycled. It should be made mandatory for large stores to have their own recycling units where the customers should be encouraged to deposit their worn out bags. The government could also levy a tax at the sale point every time a new plastic bag is given and the fund thus collected could be used to constitute an environment fund meant for fighting environmental pollution. Above all, the plastic industry should be exhorted to be accountable for the disposal of the plastic waste by contributing to the setting up of a dedicated cleaning force of employees for the collecting of plastic waste. The starting point is the imposition of a blanket ban on the manufacture, sale and use of plastic shopping bags.

(The article published in weekly magazine Uday India in December 20-26, 2015 edition)

107 thoughts on “Banning Manufacture and Sale of Plastic Bags

  1. Radha Garg

    Why dont they stop manufacturing units from producing plastic bags. Such lack of dedication is what is increasing this ever prevailing problem to last such long.

    Reply
  2. Nitin Varshney

    You must tell BJP government that even cows health gets deterred by eating used plastic bags. Then they might take this seriously.

    Reply
  3. Ankur Mehta

    What about making a new ministry or at least a different department for banning plastic bags in the country. Modi should do this without delay.

    Reply
  4. Gopal Narendra

    In western countries there are different grades of plastic that are in use to combat pollution but in India we allow all grades. This shows there is no dedication over this matter.

    Reply
  5. Lokesh Bansal

    Some time back they banned plastic packaging of pan masala and gutka. But wafers and biscuits etc are still in plastic packaging which is the cause of this concern.

    Reply
  6. Priyank Saxena

    Today when government thinks of cleaning our rivers and other water reservoirs it is needed that plastic bottles are not thrown there. Plastic exists for long and contaminates water.

    Reply
  7. Komal Gupta

    I have seen plastic pouches of water plastic water bottles and plastic bags thrown out there on roads in India. Does the government have no means to stop this.

    Reply
  8. Tushar bhatia

    At railway stations and platforms plastic material should be banned because people use and throw these on their way out of the train. Instead there should be paper packing and dust bina in all compartments.

    Reply
  9. Himanshu S Sharma

    In Paris world leaders should ban plastic along with fossil fuel and green house gases. I see no commitment towards climate change from any country in the world.

    Reply
  10. Bharat Bhushan

    Common man must unite against this evil. Only government cannot enforce any laws. Implementing them needs support from general public. I appeal allto purchase jute bags

    Reply
  11. Chaitanya thombre

    I should be leaving this one liner for your hard work. Great knowledge and good command over writing. Long way to go.

    Reply
  12. Sandeep Venugopal

    This is a very good tip particularly to those fresh to the blogosphere. Short but very accurate info Appreciate your sharing this one. A must read article.

    Reply
  13. Rajan Beeshman

    Some parts of Bangalore, the local government has enforced seperate ‘dry waste’ and ‘wet waste’, so the problem could be minimized. Doing this at national level will be herculian task, not to mention the recycling cost of such plastic bags. This is a life style change, need to be taught from school level. Hopefully, swachat Bharat mission takes care.

    Reply
  14. Chetan Musale

    True sir. There is a new technology where the plastic material to be disposed can be used in road construction

    Reply
  15. Himanshu Arora

    Very true, we need to realise that by using plastic bag we have done wrong deed and still practicing, but if we want our next generation to flourish in healthy atmosphere then plastic bags have to go off.

    Reply
  16. Akella Gourisankar

    Which Ever City I Have Gone , Very Little Of The Ban Is Working ! 95% don’t Follow ! First The Government Officials At All Levels Should Be Monitored As If It Were A Criminal Offense With Appropriate. Penalties ! Then Only They Will Stir Into Action And Motivate The Public !

    Reply
  17. Aakarshna Khurana

    Absolutely wonderful, well done everyone, what a great achievement. Here is to the future and success for everyone. Thank you all for your hard work, we know it will be ongoing and trust that you will get the appreciation and credit of putting such brilliant articles on the worldwide web. Looking forward to seeing it grow.

    Reply
  18. Ishan sachaan

    Thanks for your marvelous posting! I definitely enjoyed reading it, you might be a great author. I will be sure to bookmark your blog and will often come back very soon. I want to encourage you continue your great writing, have a nice evening!

    Reply
  19. Pankaj Sethi

    Hi there. I simply would like to give you a big thumbs up for your great information you have got right here on this post. I will be returning to your website for more soon.

    Reply
  20. Prabodh Katti

    Hello very cool website. Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I will bookmark your website and take the feeds additionally.I am glad to search out numerous useful information here within the publish, we need work out extra techniques in this regard, thank you for sharing. . . . . .

    Reply
  21. Kamal Makashre

    If some one wishes to be updated with most recent technologies therefore he must be pay a quick visit this site and be up to date all the time.

    Reply
  22. Jaskaran singh

    After looking into a handful of the blog articles on your website, I seriously like your technique of writing a blog. I added it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back in the near future.

    Reply
  23. BANEE KAUR

    I just want to say I am just all new to blogging and site-building and absolutely enjoyed this web site. Likely I want to bookmark your site . You actually come with amazing writings. Bless you for sharing your web page.

    Reply
  24. Himanshu Singh

    I blog often and I really thank you for your content. This great article has truly peaked my interest. I am going to book mark your website and keep checking for new information about once per week.

    Reply
  25. Mihir Mehta

    Remarkable! Its actually remarkable piece of writing, I have got much clear idea on the topic of from this paragraph.|

    Reply
  26. Saurabh Pokarna

    Way cool. Some extremely valid points. I appreciate you writing this post plus the rest of the website is really good.

    Reply
  27. VINEET GOYAL

    Thanks for the marvelous posting. I genuinely enjoyed reading it, you are a great author. I will always bookmark your blog and will come back very soon. I want to encourage that you continue your great work,have a nice day.

    Reply
  28. Pramod Kavle

    This is really interesting, You are a very skilled blogger. I have joined your rss feed and look forward to seeking more of your great post. Also, I have shared your web site in my social networks.

    Reply
  29. Nagarajan Kapadiya

    Great blog you have got here.. it is difficult to find high quality writing like yours these days. I truly appreciate people like you. Take care..

    Reply
  30. Vaibhav patidar

    Hi, all the time i used to check weblog posts here in the early hours in the break of day, because i enjoy to learn more and more.

    Reply
  31. Chethan S

    Greetings. Very useful advice in this particular post. it is the little changes which will make the most important changes.Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  32. Rathin Pandya

    Hello there. This blog post could not be written much better. Going through this article reminds me of my previous roommate. He constantly kept talking about this. I will send this information to him. Fairly certain he will have a very good read. I appreciate you for sharing.

    Reply
  33. Rishi Thakral

    An intriguing discussion is definitely worth comment. I do believe that you ought to publish more on this issue, it may not be a taboo matter but typically people do not speak about such topics. To the next. Cheers..

    Reply
  34. LaxmiKant Tiwary

    Very great post. I simply stumbled upon your weblog and wanted to say that I have really loved browsing your weblog posts. In any case I will be subscribing on your rss feed and I hope you write once more very soon.

    Reply
  35. Lokesh rao

    I do accept as true with all of the ideas you have introduced for your post. They are very convincing and will certainly work.Thank you for the post.

    Reply
  36. Ramkumar Bhalla

    Good day. I just would like to give you a big thumbs up for your excellent information you have right here on this post. I will be coming back to your blog for more soon.

    Reply
  37. Sayantani Sarkar

    I just had to drop you a line to let you know that John and I think that the website is BRILLIANT……………………… Well done.

    Reply
  38. Aditya Joshi

    Just spent a few very enjoyable minutes looking at the site. Excellent. Well done. Overall very good: clean, easy to navigate, informative and, importantly, interesting.

    Reply
  39. Ketan Kalra

    Hello. I simply want to give you a huge thumbs up for the great info you have right here on this post. I will be coming back to your site for more soon.

    Reply
  40. Lakshman singh

    I quite like reading an article that can make men and women think. Also, thank you for permitting me to comment.

    Reply
  41. Venu Kalia

    The site looks absolutely fantastic. Well done to all involved. Very professional & the navigation is great too. Cheers.

    Reply
  42. Rakesh Singh

    I read this article completely about the comparison of most up-to-date and preceding technologies, it is remarkable article.

    Reply
  43. Achal kaundinya

    Excellent weblog right here. Also your site loads up very fast. I want my website loaded up as quickly as yours lol

    Reply
  44. Mohit GOYAL

    I am amazed, I must say. Rarely do I come across a blog that is both equally educative and amusing, and without a doubt, you have hit the nail on the head. The problem is something which not enough folks ??? speaking intelligently about. I am very happy that I stumbled across this during my search for something relating to this.

    Reply
  45. Ajay Sood

    it is hard to come by well-informed people on this subject, but you seem like you know what You are talking about. Thanks

    Reply
  46. Abhijit Ghosh

    Hello my friend. I wish to say that this article is awesome, nice written and include almost all important infos. I would like to peer extra posts like this .

    Reply
  47. UDIT PANWAR

    Hi there to all, how is the whole thing, I think every one is getting more from this web site, and your views are pleasant designed for new users.

    Reply
  48. Parwal Rakesh

    Hi there, yeah this post is genuinely nice and I have learned lot of things from it on the topic of blogging. thanks.

    Reply
  49. Mujib peerzada

    Hurrah, that is what I was seeking for, what a material. present here at this web site, thanks Dr gupta for this post.

    Reply
  50. Raj bansal

    Hello there, you have done an incredible job. I will certainly digg it and personally suggest to my friends.

    Reply
  51. Satya sahoo

    You ought to take part in a contest for one of the most useful blogs online. I am going to highly recommend this blog.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Ketan Kalra Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *