Plastic is so ubiquotous in our lives that one should start on a small scale in the beginning

The Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change had banned the “manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use” of a large number of single use plastic items through a gazette notification last year.

The banned items include earbuds, balloon sticks, candy and ice-cream sticks; cutlery items including plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, trays; sweet boxes; invitation cards; cigarette packs; PVC banners measuring under 100 microns and polystyrene for decoration.

The ban is being implemented in phases, with plastic carry bags of less than 120 microns thickness being banned from December 12, 2022. So, only carry bags having a thickness of more than 120 microns would be allowed in the market from January 1, 2023 onwards.

Fortunately, the masses and the public in general have reacted positively to this ban and people are also trying on their own to make this movement a success.

However, at the same time, plastic has become so ubiquitous to our lives, that phasing it out might be an uphill task. Hence, the phased approach.

Read Plastic: How it became the ‘lubricant of globalisation’

Plastic, like the fabled Midas Touch, came as a bane camouflaged as a boon. We have been hooked to it ever since its inception as it is easy to mass produce, cheap and convenient.

But with the passage of time, humanity has eventually realised that they have been feeding a monster, which is now engulfing their planet itself.

Here is a small guide, which helps the individuals to live a plastic-free life, to the maximum extent possible.

For a week, try to find out all those items used by you which plastic in them. You can either use a Microsoft Excel sheet or do it the old fashioned way with a pen and a notebook.

Once you are done with the audit, you will realise that plastic is near ubiquitous. It is everywhere — from the diapers of infants to our phone cases.

However, we aren’t trying to eliminate all the plastic from our lives. This audit will instead help you get a list of what all plastic can be conveniently eliminated from our daily use.

Try to identify 6-7 items which you can easily eliminate from your life. Try to wipe out them from your routine first. For example, cloth diapers can be used for babies instead of plastic ones. Similarly, we can use a bamboo or other wooden toothbrush in the morning.

Try to increase the phase outs to more essential stuff slowly but steadily.

This simple habit can cause you to avoid a lot of plastic. Moreover, it is a super convenient life hack as well, which lets you do your travelling in a highly organised manner.

Also, you can also keep your waste like used chips packets, tetra packs of beverages in it and throw them whenever you encounter a dustbin.

I had mentioned in one of my previous articles that the fashion industry is one of the worst polluters on this planet. Well, the cosmetics industry ain’t a saint either. Many personal care products are deliberately designed to come in small quantities that need frequent restocking.

The packaging is also meant to convey quantity and quality. Unfortunately, all this heads to landfills and the ocean once they are used.

Plus, many products such as toothpaste and facewash contain microbeads that are sometimes inadvertently ingested during use. They also cannot be filtered. So, they are eventually released into the oceans.

So, always make it a habit to read the label carefully. Anything that contains polyethylene, polypropylene or polystyrene in it is better avoided, for the planet as well as your own health.

Plus try to choose brands that use packaging made of 100 per cent tree-free paper, cotton and bamboo. People often criticise me for it saying, “Oh, but you’re cutting down trees.” Well, be guilt-free as bamboo is one of the fastest-growing plants in the world.

I have tried to make this guide as actionable and reasonable as possible. For a habit to stick to us, it should only be mildly discomforting in the start. Otherwise, we humans who are by nature a comfort-seeking species, would abandon it.

I assure you that no step is too small to save this planet. Do your bit, take care of these small things and eventually, the big things will automatically fall in place. Happy Plastic Free Living!

Hardik Siroha is an assistant environmental engineer with Haryana’s state pollution control board

Views expressed are the author's own and don’t necessarily reflect those of Down To Earth 

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