2018 World Environment Day Essay Competition – Third Position

KNOW AND BEAT PLASTIC POLLUTION   By: Urgen Lhamo

We earmark and commemorate World Environment Day every year on 5^th June with oodles of speeches and think pieces about how to tackle the grave issues our planet earth is facing at the moment. If instead, we had worked every day in every small manner we could to protect our planet, then perhaps we would have fewer problems right now to deal with.The environment in which we dwell seeks our care and not our ignorance. It is evident and crystal clear that plastic pollution has become one of the major problems and the consumption of plastic is increasing every year to an enormous amount. Plastic pollution is definitely injuring our environment and we ought to fight this battle ourselves since we are responsible for it. When plastic has gathered in an area and has begun to afflict the natural environment and create problems for plants, wildlife and even the human population, then it is called plastic pollution. We need to look deeper into this problem, its causes, effects and how to beat plastic pollution.

To our utter dismay, according to the United Nations Environment, every year the world uses 500 billion plastic bags and we buy 1 million plastic bottles every minute. And would you not be appalled if you come to learn that every year we use 17 million barrels of oil to produce plastic bottles for our water?Do you know that 50% of the plastic we use is single-use or disposable and plastic makes up 10% of all of the waste we generate?Plastics are used because these are easy and cheap to produce and they can last a long time. But unfortunately, it has given rise to a huge plastic pollution that now the world is repaying. Plastic pollution has a direct and harmful impact on wildlife. Plastic pollution adversely affects land, waterways and oceans. Plastic can find its ways into our water supply and contains a number of harmful chemicals which can be a threat for humans too. If you have ever taken a stroll down a beach, you might have noticed plastic around.Thousands of marine mammals unintentionally eat plastic lingering in the ocean or they get caught in plastic litter. In bothways, it results in their death.  The marine mammals include innocent fishes, sea turtles, sea birds and other marine mammals. The questions that are now unfolding before my eyes are why they should suffer for no reason and why are humans so heartless? Or is it because they are not aware of such terrible consequences?

These facts are indeed harrowing and shell-shocking. We must each therefore as an individual take the much needed steps first in our homes, then locality and so on. As the saying goes; think globally, act locally, we have to initially start with the minute actions we take in our daily routine. We can form “No plastic clubs” in our respective settlements and encourage people to join the club and beat plastic pollution collectively. In the club people can discuss plastic problems in the community and compare developments taking place in terms of plastic pollution. They can also magnify the idea of “reuse, reduce and recycle”. Reducing is lessening the amount of trash we make or to limit the number of plastic we purchase. Reusing is reusing items as much as possible before replacing them. Recycling is using trash to remake new goods that can be sold again. And these clubs can ultimately pressurize the government and higher local authorities to initiate actions to reduce plastic pollution, for example by signing petitions. And that way it will be more effective. We can also organize campaigns to create awareness about the severe consequences of plastic pollution. Some people are unaware of the drastic effect on our environment. So it is our utmost responsibility to educate them about this issue; be it in a school or settlement as a whole. And of course we can first start by educating our family and friends. We can organize essay competitions in various educational institutions related to plastic pollution. Because, that way, students will do more research on plastic pollution and can learn more on their own about this issue. And if they know they will be conscious of these problems and they will spontaneously cooperate with programs to fight plastic pollution. They can also conduct debates on plastic pollution or display information on this theme. Schools or institutions can also take initiatives by reducing the use of plastics in their campus itself and thereby setting an example for others. And most importantly, it begins from home and ourselves as before we point fingers towards others we must ponder what we as an individual can contribute in this quest to beat plastic pollution. We can avoid using plastic bags and use go green bags whenever we have to purchase something in the market. We should not feel awkward to be the one to refuse single use plastics such as water bottles, plastic bags, straws, cups and so on. Congratulations if you had ever refused using these things, if not you can start doing it from this moment on. Because I remembered a quote by the great Mahatma Gandhi which says; “Be the change that you wish to see in the world”. Do not hesitate in trying to become a change maker in our society. Another way to beat plastic pollution is to support and to donate to non-profit organizations that are involved in tackling these problems. That can help them initiate and manage programs in better and more effective ways. Also participating in the initiatives organized by various organizations on plastic pollution can matter a lot. There are some awe-inspiring stories of beating plastic pollution and we can learn from these amazing stories and let the action do the talking.We can organize sessions in settlements and schools to inform them about these encouraging stories through Power Point Presentations and other ways. Whenever we have a gathering or meetings in our camps, we must bring our own cup or plates rather than distributing plastic cups and plates. We have to create more advertisements on plastic pollution so as to have a wider impact on creating awareness of this issue. People will feel the urge to play their own part in beating plastic pollution. We have to hold meetings in our settlements in order to highlight and discuss on this issue. And then we can organize cleanliness drives in our respective camps. In order to create awareness, social media can play a vital role. Social media can help us inform and educate people about plastic pollution. For example, if we had organized a campaign to beat plastic pollution, we can spread the word through social media and more people will be informed about the event or the campaign. Mass communication can become an effective tool if it is used in a good way. Plastic pollution problems can only be solved if we all come together as global citizens with local actions. Because we can together as a one world make a huge difference to save our planet earth.

However, one question that can turn up in our minds is if a plastic is harmful, then why are they produced in excess and who encourages this process? Since if it is not produced, then we don’t have to worry about its consequences. We need to know the root cause of this problem and find a solution to beat it. I feel that influential companies can pledge to reduce plastic pollution because they can have a significant impact. The companies can also enhance their corporate social responsibility activities by working towards beating plastic pollution. The government can take measures by adopting policies and strategies to reduce plastic production and consumption.  Government actions are important because they can have a bigger impact on solving plastic problems.Plastic pollution cannot be ignored; rather we need to treat this issue seriously. World Earth Day is obviously worth celebrating because our planet earth has given us a lot. But did we ask this question: what we have done to preserve our precious earth? To solve plastic problems we need proper planning and action. We must begin to realize that it is “we” who can make all the difference before it’s too late. I am going to wrap up this essay with a slogan:“puzzle out plastic pollution to nurture nature now”.