EnviroXchange - News Detail

10% of daily garbage is plastic

Company Name : Nepra Environmental Solutions Pvt.Ltd-bansi Source : The Times of India

AHMEDABAD: At least 10 per cent of the municipal waste generated in Ahmedabad every day, is plastic.

The city generates around 2,600 tonnes of waste daily. A study conducted in August last year revealed that over 10 per cent of this was plastic waste. The ministry of environment and forest has issued guidelines on banning plastic. The ban was enforced after municipal bodies found that drains were clogged with thin polythene bags. Plastic polluted the air when burnt with other garbage and it also interfered in waste management processes.

A polythene bag that can easily fly in the air is now illegal - this is how environment ministry officials define polythene below 40 microns for the public to understand. Bags below this measure are banned. The ministry guidelines also ban free distribution of carry bags in retail outlets. The MOEF says that the concerned municipal authority has to determine the minimum price for carry bags depending upon their quality and size.

Pointers:

* Bags less than 40 microns in thickness should not to be distributed or sold

* Name, registration of the manufacturer and thickness of the bag should be printed on each carry bag

* Municipal authorities should set up plastic waste collection centers

* Corporations should also make arrangements for disposal of such waste

* Gujarat Pollution Control Board has to prepare an annual report on implementation of the ban and send it to the Central Pollution Control Board

* AMC should ensure safe collection storage, segregation and transportation of plastic waste