Save Mother Earth is the popular slogan that creates awareness about saving the Earth from destruction. We all know that Earth is the only planet that has life on it. As of now, it is clear that this planet has been a gift for us humans and other living things that have all the facilities we need, naturally. From air to water to food, everything is provided to us by Earth and thus we call it Mother Earth. Had it not been the beautiful environment and the availability of resources on the earth we could not have existed. We have exploited earth for our own interests and today the planet we call our mother, faces the threat of extinction of life on its soil just because of our ill practices. The pollution levels are an all-time high, the resources are fast depleting. The responsibility to save Mother Earth starts from personal level. In our daily activities, though we could afford, we should restrain ourselves from using energy excessively. Simple decisions to reduce the use of water, electricity, transportation etc., could mean a lot in this direction. By being a model to others in our activities, we can bring about the required social change. Governments across countries and stakeholders are creating the awareness to save Mother Earth. Afforestation, rain water harvesting, recycling waste, cutting industrial pollution etc., are some efforts of the various Governments. Observing International Earth Day and Earth Hour every year generates sensitivity to the issue. The Paris Agreement of 2015 is the latest corporate step to keep the damages to the earth in check.
One of the major contributors to the present devastating state of Earth is pollution caused by man- made product, plastic. Just like several modern products and technology, plastic has negative effects. The negative effects of plastic are hard to observe and may not appear to affect us directly, but plastic damages our planet and health. Plastics are typically organic polymers of high molecular mass and often contain other substances. They are usually synthetic, most commonly derived from petrochemicals. Plastics are inexpensive and durable, and as a result levels of plastic production by humans are high. However, the chemical structure of most plastics renders them resistant to many natural processes of degradation and as a result they are slow to degrade. Together, these two factors have led to a high prominence of plastic pollution in the environment. Pollution caused by plastics can affect each and every minute aspects in our surroundings including microrganisms, trees, plants, aquatic plants and organisms and even us the humans.
Plastic pollution has become one of the most pressing environmental issues, as rapidly increasing production of disposable plastic products overwhelms the world’s ability to deal with them. Plastic pollution is most visible in developing Asian and African nations, where garbage collection systems are often inefficient or non-existent. But the developed world, especially in countries with low recycling rates, also has trouble properly collecting discarded plastics. The conveniences plastics offer, however, led to a throw-away culture that reveals the material’s dark side: today, single-use plastics account for 40 % of the plastic produced every year. Many of these products, such as plastic bags and food wrappers, have a lifespan of mere minutes to hours, yet they may persist in the environment for hundreds of years. Most of the plastic trash in the oceans, Earth’s last sink, flows from land. Trash is also carried to sea by major rivers, which act as conveyor belts, picking up more and more trash as they move downstream. Once at sea, much of the plastic trash remains in coastal waters. But once caught up in ocean currents, it can be transported around the world.
Millions of animals are killed by plastics every year, from birds to fish to other marine organisms. Nearly 700 species, including endangered ones, are known to have been affected by plastics. Nearly every species of seabird eats plastics. In many cases, these tiny bits pass through the digestive system and are expelled without consequence. But plastics have also been found to have blocked digestive tracts or pierced organs, causing death. Stomachs so packed with plastics reduce the urge to eat, causing starvation. Plastics have been consumed by land-based animals, including elephants, hyenas, zebras, tigers, camels, cattle, and other large mammals, in some cases causing death. Tests have also confirmed liver and cell damage and disruptions to reproductive systems, prompting some species, such as oysters, to produce fewer eggs.
The solution is to prevent plastic waste from entering rivers and seas in the first place. This could be accomplished with improved waste management systems and recycling, better product design that takes into account the short life of disposable packaging, and reduction in manufacturing of unnecessary single-use plastics.
Taking new and better initiatives to curb the use of plastics and reduce the pollution can be a step to a new and better future. Initiatives can be taken at various strata of society and each step taken can be effective to the people directly and indirectly. By making the environment green and wealthy can even make poor and unemployed wealthy. Some of the initiatives that can be made effective includes rural and urban collection centre thus making life of rag-pickers better, changing the behaviour of people by campaigns, collaborate with recycle industries and linkage with different stakeholders and by increasing employment opportunities through this. Programs have some objective to implement this series of steps to be carried out and seeing to sustainability of program it is necessary to good outcome. Where program is going to implement, that context will have some expectation to get better environment. Program will work on both contexts urban and rural which is part of this program and both are very important to implement this program. Program will provide the two types of bin for plastics and degradable. Rag-pickers collect different type of recyclable things. They have good environment to learn many things to improve their skill and knowledge and as well program will change their behavior because they are not aware about their health and suffering from various diseases.
Given the global scale of plastic pollution, the cost of removing plastics from the environment would be prohibitive. Most solutions to the problem of plastic pollution, therefore, focus on preventing improper disposal or even on limiting the use of certain plastic items in the first place. Fines for littering have proved difficult to enforce, but various fees or outright bans on foamed food containers and plastic shopping bags are now common, as are deposits redeemed by taking beverage bottles to recycling centers. So-called extended producer responsibility, or EPR, schemes make the manufacturers of some items responsible for creating an infrastructure to take back and recycle the products that they produce. Awareness of the serious consequences of plastic pollution is increasing, and new solutions, including the increasing use of biodegradable plastics and a “zero waste” philosophy, are being embraced by governments and the public.
The most effective way to reduce plastic pollution is to not create plastics in the first place. If you are like most people, it’s difficult to make it through your day without acquiring some form of plastic. That is where reuse comes in. Once the plastic is in your possession, it is your chance to be creative and find different usages for it. Reuse plastic produce bags for sandwiches, plastic grocery bags for small trash bags, and re-use your plastic silverware! If you can’t find a use for something, donate it. Not only will you be reducing waste, you will be helping others. Most people skip this step and go directly to recycling, but reusing plastics can reduce the demand for new plastics to be created. Recycling is one of the easiest and most traditional ways to have a positive impact on your environment and community. The simple act of tossing a can into a recycling bin rather than a trashcan not only diverts needless trash from entering landfills, but also decreases the need to extract and process virgin materials from the earth. In this way, recycling saves natural resources and energy, thus helping the economy by reducing production and energy expenses. After you have reused your plastic as many times as you can and are ready to dispose of it, choose the recycling container instead of the trash. Recycling plastic takes less energy than making plastic from raw materials. Sure it can be a hassle to clean your peanut butter jar to recycle it rather than tossing it in the trash, but the impact is vastly different and the choice is yours.
In short, we see how plastic pollution is ruining everyone’s life on earth. We must take major steps to prevent it. We must use alternatives like cloth bags and paper bags instead of plastic bags. If we are purchasing plastic, we must reuse it. We must avoid drinking bottled water which contributes largely to plastic pollution. The government must put a plastic ban on the use of plastic. All this can prevent plastic pollution to a large extent.
A Mother is the source of life. To save Mother Earth is to save us children, in turn. With our combined efforts, it is possible to restore her former resources and glory. In the process, we would also contribute to the welfare of the future generations.
