Impact of plastics on Environmental Pollution

Thousands of plastic factories are producing tons of plastic goods which are popularly used by the
people because of their ease, cheapness and convenience. Due to non-biodegradable nature they
cause hazardous negative impact on the environment. Disposal of plastic waste which are major
cause of environment pollution becomes carcinogenic to human, birth defects, impaired immunity,
endocrine disruption, development and reproductive effect. In addition to dumping of plastic
material into marine, a large number of species are known to be harmed or killed which could
jeopardize their survival, especially since many are already endangered by other forms of
anthropogenic activities.in order to reduce the impact we need to raise public awareness, the
regional and national different levels of educational curriculums must include the waste
management systems from the grass-roots as information resources. In addition to creating public
awareness on the importance of a healthy environment, mechanisms of controlling the generation
of wastes at the source, alternative disposal ways, establishing additional drop-off areas (landfills)
and incineration mechanisms, plastic recycling facilities are also recommended.

Management of plastic bags waste: an assessment of scenarios in Jordan

The plastic bags waste littering problem is significantly increasing in Jordan and becomes a pressing
issue. However, no comprehensive policy has been so far advanced. The main objective of this study
is to advance and assess different scenarios to control the use of plastic bags based on enviro-socio-
economic impacts analysis. The results obtained reveal that a blanket ban may not be the best
possible solution for the environment. Moreover, it has better sustainable impacts in comparison
with other scenarios even though it does not fully eliminate the littering problem. A proper cost-
benefit analysis of reduction of plastic bag consumption is recommended to estimate the social cost
of plastic bag consumption and the actual costs of alternative instruments.

Three billion plastic bags are used in Jordan annually as they are provided free of charge in the
course of the shopping activities. Plastic bags littering is also classified as one of the major reasons
for sewage systems clogging, which in turn brings about rainfall-induced flooding of the tunnels and
the roads. The current assessment of plastic bags management scenarios shows that the imposition
of an environmental levy on plastic bags can dramatically decrease their consumption by 70 %, and
provide a better sustainable impact in comparison with the other scenarios advanced. Therefore, it
is recommended that a comprehensive policy concerning plastic bags waste should be developed
based on the economic instruments and measures in line with the sustainability pillars.

The need for reducing plastic shopping bag use and disposal in Africa

Plastic shopping bags are widely used for transporting a range of small consumer goods, and in some
regions, also serve secondary roles for conveying drinking water 1 and disposing of human and other
domestic wastes 2 . While annual production and use statistics are not available from industry
sectors, environmental groups estimate that between 500 billion and 1 trillion plastic bags are used
globally each year 3 . Since their inception, uncontrolled disposal of these bags has been causing
environmental problems worldwide, and many municipal, regional, and national governments are
beginning to take action.

As with many other pollution issues in Africa, the plastic bag problem is rooted in widespread
poverty, corruption, environmental injustice, and residues of colonialism. By tying together aspects
of fundamental survival, such as acquiring drinking water and food and disposing of human waste,
with high poverty rates and vested economic interests, a suite of tools will need to be applied to
attempt to solve this critical environmental issue. Traditional command-and control approaches such
as bans, economic instruments that include taxes and levies, as well as consumer and producer
education programs will all play their role. However, only limited success will be achieved without
real political will and higher standards of living for the majority of Africa's residents.

The plastic bag ‘ban’ controversy in Zimbabwe: An analysis of policy issues and local responses

Plastic litter has become a nuisance in Zimbabwean urban areas proving to be beyond the Local
authorities’ capacity to cope with. The environmental externalities have been intensified by
perpetual usage of flimsy plastic bags within parts of the country. Following the footprints
associated with grocery plastic bag, Statutory Instrument 98 of May 2010 facilitated regularization of
plastic bag under the banner of Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources now Ministry of
Environment, Water and Climate. Despite the plastic levy on 30 microns grocery bags the move has
been facing resistance and consumers have resorted back to the plastic bags making policy
implementation imminent and contested.

The ban has been contested and due to divergent interests. Based on the narratives given by key
informant interviews it emerged that the ban was there to promote safe habits. From an ecological
point of view the ban is valid since it addresses some of the ecological footprints which include
health issues, land and air pollution as well as wildlife. These have in most instances smuggled flimsy
plastic bags from Mozambique in order to serve their clients as a courteous gesture. However, it is
paradoxical that the ban has been waivered on bread packaging plastics leaving out pet bottles and
kay-lites which have not been recalled from the system yet they contribute to the environmental
externalities. Given that scenario an outright ‘ban’ could have been prudent encompassed by
conscientization and awareness on the part of society and the business entity.

Characterization of effluents through a typical plastic recycling process: An evaluation of cleaning

performance and environmental pollution

The public and government more and more concern about water resource conservation and solid
waste recycling due to the increasing awareness of socioeconomic problems created by the
inappropriate use of these natural resources. Recycling activities must, therefore, go hand in hand
with an evaluation of the effluents generated and discharged during such operations, in order to
avoid a mere exchange of pollutants. In this study, an evaluation of optimum conditions for some
cleaning parameters by using characterization results of effluents was accomplished. A comparative
evaluation with government requirements showed that these effluents should be treated at their
source before discharge to the domestic sewage. A typical physical–chemical treatment should be
enough to comply with the requirements.

According to the requirements for emission of wastewater in the domestic sewage, these effluents
should be treated before their discharge. Some specific unit differences are necessary depending on
the type of plastic used due to extrapolation of emission limits of oil and grease in polyolefins pre-
washing step and Pb excess in PET washing step. However, in a general sense, a preliminary tank
followed by a unit for chemical precipitation and a neutralization step seemed to be enough for both
effluents. Therefore, the use of wastes from a curbside system (selective collection) could reduce
the need for cleaning agents and the emission of some pollutants, thereby reducing the costs of
treatment units.