- June 29, 2020
- 32 Comments
- Plastic Waste
The Covid-19 crises have put mankind is an unprecedented situation. Though it is very unfortunate to have lost so many lives to this virus, the microbial entity has done one good to us. It has made us realize that the human being is not the most powerful specie on this plant and that we are merely a part of this ecosystem.
The Menace of Plastic Waste and the Deadly Microplastics
Human activities and negligence towards nature have done immense harm to the mother earth. We have polluted our land, air, and water to an extent that its consequences are bare open in front of our eyes. We have littered in places where cleaning and collecting waste has become a mammoth task.
What happens to this plastic waste? Most of the time the plastic waste just stays at the same place for years and years or end up in landfills. Being a trekker and a nature lover, this aches me to my soul. Seeing plastic waste in the most distant and difficult places to reach, hurts me a lot. When I see plastic bottles floating on the rivers, polythene bags lying on the trek trails, used toothbrushes, and food wrappers in the mountains, it agitates me. It agitates me because it stains the beautiful picture I come to see when I want to immerse myself in the beauty of mountains and valleys.
But all of these are my thoughts and why should others bother about it. After all, not everyone feels the same. But the fact is, it matters to all of us and it eventually affects all of us. Cigarette Buds, Plastic Bottles, Plastic Bottle Caps, Plastic Bags, Food Wrappers, and Plastic Straws are some of the most littered objects. Microplastics from this waste are extremely dangerous for our health. Even from the distant places in nature such as mountains, they travel to our food at our home in the cities.
Why it matters to every one of us?
Let me explain to you ‘How’. Suppose one throws a used toothbrush on a trek. The toothbrush slowly weathers out and releases microplastics into the soil. The rain, snow, and landslide take those microplastics to the river and then to our oceans. Our rivers are a major source of drinking water for millions of people. The microplastics present in the water pose a huge threat to the health of these millions of people. This not only pollutes our river and ocean but also hampers aquatic life and the oceanic ecosystem. Because of plastic waste in the ocean and rivers, the fishes that we eat get stuffed with microplastics, which eventually land in our own body. With the rise in plastic pollution like never before there are high chances that you are eating plastic through various unimaginable ways. Not just this, the plastic waste littered in the mountains makes the soil loose, making it more prone to landslide. This poses an imminent threat to the lives of locals.
Reduced human activities during the lockdown have shown us that nature has immense power to heal itself. The water of one of the most polluted rivers, Ganga has turned drinkable, Dhauladhar Mountain Ranges are visible from Jalandhar city, and air quality in Delhi has improved drastically. All of these facts tell us that the time is not lost to undo the damage we have already done. Though all of our past actions might not be irrevocable, if we just become mindful of our waste we can do a lot to make the situation better.
Make your actions count
Avoiding single-use plastic, using eco-friendly products, disposing your waste at correct places, and adopting a sustainable lifestyle can do wonders. Make small and simple changes. One step at a time. These small incremental changes are important because plastic waste affects all of us. It matters to each one of us.
The Covid-19 pandemic has presented an opportunity to reminisce on our actions and look at our lifestyle and the choices we made in the past. It is time to change.
I am sure you will be happier to see less polluted trek trails, mountains, rivers, oceans, and cities; and most importantly to eat plastic-free food.
Let us coexist with Nature!
Like!! Really appreciate you sharing this blog post.Really thank you! Keep writing.
Thank you for the appreciation. I am glad you liked it.
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The best line is that “the time is not lost to undo the damage we have already done” If we make it possible to undo the damage then it is the best thing that the mankind can do.
You are correct Kalyani. The time is not lost to undo the damage we have done. But we need to act now.
It is time to take simple small steps towards a sustainable lifestyle. We should avoid single-use plastic wherever possible.
Let us make the switch towards eco-friendly products.
Thank you! We appreciate your feedback.
Very nice blog!
Thank you! I am glad you liked it.
Really nice write up Sankalp…
Thank you Smita!
I am glad you liked it.
Liked the way you added your thoughts!
Covid has given us a example how we can lowerize the pollution. Just a weird but might be a impactful suggestion from me
would be – Human should adapt a practice of taking a complete lockdown in every month where they would do exact what we are following in these outbreak. Beacuse if you ask Human to not use the plastic we would come up with another option which might affect earth in unknowing way that we didn’t thought of.(Paper bags costs the trees).
I’ll end up my lines here and would like to appreciate your blog, We need more and more nature lover and heartwarming peoples like you. Keep writing. Keep Saving Earth.
Thank You!
That’s a good suggestion but I am not sure how feasible it would be to implement it for the government, considering lockdown has economic implications.
We must be conscious to avoid single-use plastic. simple steps can make big difference.
Kudos!
Keep tuned to this space for interesting content.
Very well explained
The best few initiative are :
-If we can make few housing society as a role model
– small school projects
-forming some NGO initiative
Many more
Thank you Bhavesh.
That’s a great idea. Having a role model to look at is always a great thing. It will surely facilitate the transformation of our community towards sustainable lifestyle.
Довольно интересно
Thank you
A really important topic which everyone admits but no one acts. It was a great read. Its high time organizations and human beings understand the criticality of the issue.
A growing concern is electronic waste too.
We should all be concentrating and investing on cheap eco friendly alternatives to have prolonged sustainability.
This article should have maximum reach.
Thank you Debopriyo.
You are absolutely correct that it’s high time every one of us take simple actions to do our bit.
Very nice initiative taken.Plastic waste is really a big problem for us.Good to see your blog.Its very helpful for encourage us.Keep going.
Thank you!
I am glad you liked it.
Very nice thought.. We all have to think on it n should take very serious action on it.. Otherwise we all to suffer in future.. I appreciate that someone is thinking about it… Well done..
Thank You Rahul. It’s great to know you resonate with the thought.
Lets us all take our simple steps to save this planet
Sure
Nice observation , appreciable work done by you Sankalp liked it.
Hope everyone will understand the importance of nature.
Thank you Rahul!
I appreciate your thoughts Sankalp. We must adapt ourselves to this climate change for a well being. I wish, people should embrace it with kind heart for the better future..
Thank you Mahender for resonating with my thought.
I enjoyed reading this blog. Its high time for the entire humanity to realize the adverse effect Plastic has on this planet. This blog urges the reader to look upon their individual habits and take possible corrective actions to boycott and prevent plastic usage.
All facts and data presented are up to the mark. I truly appreciate your effort of enlightening us through this blog. Thank you !
Thank you Aditya
Hey, Good one Sankalp. Appreciate your thoughts and efforts which you are making to bring change in people thoughts.
Thank You so much
such an amazing content! Much appreciated.
nice blog…as you have explained that plastics suffocating our lives but it also can be settled properly by managing the
Plastics waste