After coronavirus, are we heading towards a pandemic of plastic pollution?

The lockdown imposed to curb the growth of highly contagious coronavirus across the globe has healed the environment in ways never seen before. There was a sharp decline in the rate of carbon emission, the air quality level improved and water of the river Ganga was announced 'fit to drink'. But not all the measures being taken to contain the virus have had a positive impact on the environment.

Plastic pollution, which has always been a major global concern increased during these past four months of lockdown. Before the outbreak of this disease, several steps were taken to curb the use of single-use plastic, which ends up sitting in the ocean. Government banned plastic bags and encouraged people to use paper or reusable products.

But due to the outbreak of coronavirus, the use of plastic has increased beyond imagination. In the current scenario, plastic is playing an important role in protecting people from the deadly virus, especially frontline workers. But, plastic face masks, gloves and hand sanitizer bottles, which are some of the common essential items to protect against the virus, have increased the burden of plastic waste.

Not only this, but e-commerce websites and restaurants are also heavily dependent on plastic for packaging the good and storing the food, to prevent any kind of infection. The problem is that all these plastic materials that are used in the name of prevention are finding their way into regular piles of garbage that is not only increasing the risk of infection but is also increasing the burden of plastic pollution.

As per a report published in a leading daily, a waste handling facility in Chennai claims it receives around 300 kg of COVID-19 waste every day just from Trichy and nearby areas. In general, they received 8,000 kg of COVID-19 waste in May, and 3,200 kg in April.

The rate at which we are using single-use plastic for various purposes at the present time is increasing the risk of bigger health hazards in future. Plastic waste can affect your cardiovascular, digestive, respiratory, neurological, endocrine and immune system. Lack of a proper disposable system can even lead to serious health concerns.

As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), the toxic and non-biodegradable items can be easily replaced by other environment-friendly, recyclable materials like glass, ceramics, natural fibres, paper, cardboard, rice husk, natural rubber and animal proteins. This way we can not only keep our mother Earth pollution-free but will be successful in reducing the risk of a plastic pandemic in future.