The Harm Of Plastic Bags To The Environment

Human life is becoming more modern and fuller. The demand for using natural resources and industrial products is increasing day by day, that led to the birth of many companies, factories racing in production and even despite the moral values that cause many bad phenomena. But the highlight of that is the environmental problem; prominent problem is probably the problem of plastic bags, which challenges and seriously affects the environment today, is environmental pollution. Environmental pollution is caused by plastic bags, they are formed right from the factory of the finished product, and then the way of human use, and the last, their decomposition is harming our environment. “In fact, that the United Nations has identified plastic pollution as one of the world’s biggest environmental challenges.”

Firstly, environmental pollution is caused by plastic bags that are formed right from the manufacturing. Because of the immediate benefits, manufacturers are always looking for ways to make products as much, as quickly as possible; the factory uses more gas, and as a result, they release more and more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Furthermore, there are manufacturers who are willing to skip the treatment step to direct emissions and toxic waste from the factory to the outside. in fact, many types of plastic bags made from pure petroleum, when burial, they will affect the soil and water environment, while burning them will create toxic emissions of dioxins and furans, affecting the endocrine glands, causing cancer, reducing immunity; plastic bags dye blue, red, containing metals such as lead, cadmium if containing processed food will be harmful to human health. “Results demonstrated that PVC bags contain 40%–56% of Cl while others 70%–90% of C followed by H and insignificant quantity of N and S. All samples showed the lowest moisture content (˂1%) and higher LCV (18–47 MJ/kg). 5 out of 33 PB samples exhibited Cr and Cd contents exceeded standards (ASTM F963); i.e., Cr in black HDPE (63 mg/kg), multi–color LDPE (78 mg/kg) and black LDPE (67 mg/kg), while Cd in purple PVC (334 mg/kg) and black PVC (135 mg/kg). A noteworthy quantity of Pb, Cr and Cd leaching was.”

Secondly, among the many disasters that humans suffer in modern times, there is one called 'White Pollution.' It refers to the fact that people use plastic bags excessively and improperly, leading to countless consequences that we cannot foresee. Plastic bags have become an indispensable item in everyday life, and it is associated with the inherent habits of many people; almost everywhere, from small shops to supermarkets and big shopping malls they are. The United Nations has published an environmental report with numbers that stunned many people. Many people would not expect the fact that up to 5,000 billion plastic bags are used in the world every year, so millions of plastic bags are used and discharged into the environment every day. They are present in every corner, river and stream and eventually into the ocean. “These bags blow in the wind and get caught in tree branches, clog storm drains and cause flooding, and end up either in landfills or in our waterways and oceans. In the oceans, sea turtles, whales, and other wildlife mistake them for food and eat them; some dead beached whales have been found with stomachs filled with plastic bags. In the ocean, plastics eventually break up into micro-plastics”. This type of pollution caused by plastic waste and plastic bags is ironically a disaster caused by man himself, for his fellow citizens and is now becoming an urgent global problem. It considered the second largest environmental challenge in the world, after climate change.

Finally, the most dangerous harm of plastic bags to the environment is the nature that is difficult to decompose in natural conditions. The plastic bag is so small and fragile, but the process of decomposition can last from 500 to 1,000 years if they are not affected by sunlight. Moreover, its presence in the environment will seriously affect the soil and water, because plastic bags mixed with the soil will change the physical properties of the soil, causing soil erosion, making the soil unable to retain water and nutrients. , prevents oxygen from passing through the soil, affecting plant growth. If plastic bags are thrown into ponds, lakes or rivers, they will clog drains, ditches, canals and ditches, causing wastewater stagnation and flooding, leading to the production of many pathogenic bacteria. More seriously, the soil and water environment contaminated by plastic bags will directly and indirectly affect human health. Plastic waste has been dumped into the ocean, damaging the coral system, threatening the habitat of marine animals and plants, causing 1.5 million animals every year to die from plastic waste poisoning. “Plastic debris causes the deaths of more than a million seabirds yearly as well as 100,000 marine mammals.”

However, from the past until now, plastic bags have always been considered as the most convenient cargo containers and are used around the world. We cannot deny the utility of plastic bags in daily life. In addition, plastic bags are low cost, used by sellers very comfortable, even many people still abuse plastic bags. For example, when to buy the fish at market, instead of using a plastic bag, shoppers will request to use 2 bags for fear of fishy and dirty on clothes and other items. More specifically, the profits of businessmen produce them. The removal of plastic bags, not using it, certainly in the future we will have to do to protect the environment and people's health. Plastic bag decomposes in soil in years, and burning causes air pollution, so we should limit the use, instead use bags made from natural ingredients that are environmental friendliness. “That is a potentially big problem for restaurants, coffee shops, zoos, theme parks and others. And, for many, their solution has been found in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Indiana's second-largest city is home to Aardvark Straws - the nation's only producer of paper straws.”

In brief, we have to pay more attention to this planet before things get too late. Let's work together, because change does not simply depend on a few individuals, the few cannot make a difference but when hundreds, millions of people decide to act together, it really brings the strong impact.