Up to five trillion grocery bags are used each year and like most plastic garbage barely any is recycled, the UN said as it warned the world was choking on trash.
In a report for International Environment Day, the UN warned at current levels the earth could be awash with 12 billion tonnes of plastic trash by the middle of the century.
Most of this plastic garbage clogging waterways and landfill is single-use items like straws, bags, and cutlery.
The report said the five trillion plastic bags consumed each year equaled nearly 10 million plastic bags per minute.
“If tied together, all these plastic bags could be wrapped around the world seven times every hour.”
Some 79 percent of the plastic ever made has ended up dumped, with hardly any reused or destroyed despite recycling and other initiatives to curb use, the report said.
Just nine percent of the nine billion tonnes of plastic the world has ever produced has been recycled. Only a little more — 12 percent — has been incinerated.
This leaves only landfill, oceans and waterways as the resting place for the world’s plastic trash, where it takes thousands of years to decompose.
In India, plastic has been found inside dead cows while a whale in Thailand died after consuming waste bags.
Garbage floating at sea costs fishing, shipping, and tourism industries in Asia-Pacific $1.3 billion a year, the report says.
The UN said more than 60 countries had introduced bans and levies on single-use plastic items like bags.
Bollywood celebs are taking up the cause and using their stardom to create awareness regarding the hazards of using the non-recyclable and single-use plastic.
Here’s how Bollywood celebs are making considerable attempts to curb the plastic splurge:
Dia Mirza
The former beauty queen was appointed as the United Nations Environment Goodwill Ambassador for India in November 2017 and is resorting to social-media for the cause. The Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein actress recently posted a video, where she talks about how nearly 45 billion feminine hygiene products are disposed of each year, which, when incinerated, release toxic fumes. Else, ”they end up in landfills or even in the ocean, causing serious harm to the health of the environment – to your health and to my health,” warned Dia.
She asked women to switch to biodegradable sanitary napkins, and do their bit in saving Mother Nature. The actress frequently posts videos to explain how the non-biodegradable plastic is causing an irreparable damage to our surroundings.
Juhi Chawla
Juhi Chawla has also stood in support of a plastic ban and took up the Beat Plastic Pollution challenge making rounds on social media. For World Environment Day, the actress shared a picture of herself on social media, holding wooden toothbrushes, thereby implying that she is ditching its plastic counterpart, and tagged the others to join the challenge.
The Beat Plastic Pollution challenge that Bollywood stars are taking up involves –
a) Choose which type of single-use plastic you are ready to replace
b) Take a selfie with a reusable alternative you are ready to embrace
c) Share your selfie on social media with the following #BeatPlasticPollution & #WorldEnvironmentDay
and challenge your friends.
Ayushmann Khurrana
Actor-singer Ayushmann Khurrana took to social media and posted a video, where he is singing a song titled “Tik Tak Plastic” – for an NGO Bhamla Foundation in collaboration with United Nations. The song melodiously highlights the doom that plastics are for the planet, and hits right where it hurts the most.
Kangana Ranaut
Kangana Ranaut resorted to social media to share a picture – where she can be seen wearing a mask which reads “Stop Plastic Suffocation”. The Queen actress shared two posts, in the first one, she urged people to wear a plastic mask for just ten seconds to understand the kind of environment the future generations will live in.
In the second video, she stated, “In 30 years, there will be more plastic in the sea than fish”, and showed her support for the plastic ban.
Richa Chadha
Richa Chadha has always been vocal about doing her bit for the environment. The Fukrey actress has been leading a very organic lifestyle and has adopted the idea of sustainable fashion, in an attempt to prevent further harm to the environment.
Amitabh Bachchan
Sr Bachchan has always shown support for nature-friendly causes. Be it the Versova Clean-Up drive or the Swacch Bharat Abhiyaan – Big B has never failed to take a stand for the protection of the environment.
Taapsee Pannu
The Pink actress was roped in for a campaign by Animal Planet which focuses on generating awareness regarding the survival and conservation of tigers.
Priyanka Chopra
A UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Goodwill Ambassador, Priyanka has traveled to various camps set up for underprivileged women and children, all over the world. She has been vocal about her support for plastic-ban while being immensely supportive towards other such eco-friendly causes.
Courtesy The Asian Post
