Having the opportunity to walk around polluted canals, we will see the largest amount of plastic waste, which is plastic bags, styrofoam boxes, milk boxes, water bottles, paper bags, lunch boxes... water pollution.

In particular, plastic waste is difficult to decompose, so on rainy or hot days, the smell of water rises everywhere, seriously affecting people's health, so if you want a clean channel, start Start with no more plastic waste.

Difficult to decompose, block the flow, harm the water environment

My family currently lives in the Go Vap district, next to the canal across Tran Ba Giao street. Here, our residents have to endure every day piles of plastic waste floating on the canal, overflowing on the embankment.

Especially in the hot season, a series of plastic bags, plastic bottles, styrofoam boxes, and beer cans ... float on the dark, dense water.

Of course, this situation entails the proliferation of flies, clinging to food, polluting water sources, and greatly affecting the surrounding environment.

Plastic bags are made from different materials but are mainly produced from polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) resins derived from pure petroleum along with several other chemical additives. If not decomposed, it will seriously affect the aquatic environment.

I once read a statistic from the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Ho Chi Minh City, it is estimated that everyday people in the city generate more than 9,000 tons of household waste, including 1,800 tons of plastic waste (accounting for more than 20% of the waste). ).

However, only 200 tons were recovered for recycling, accounting for about 11% of plastic waste. Thus a large amount of waste is discharged into the streets, canals, and manholes. This leads to blockage of drainage lines, contributing to more flooding during heavy rain or high tide.

How does the world behave with plastic?

It can be seen that not only in our country but the whole world still has to depend on plastic utensils and items to serve life.

However, some countries have found a way to deal with this problem. In Norway, for example, the life cycle of a plastic bottle can be up to 50 times recycled.

To call for everyone's cooperation to protect the environment, the Norwegian Government is taxing plastic products.

This will help increase people's awareness of the process of using plastic items, replacing items with other materials, and limiting plastic waste to the outside environment.

Germany is considered the leading European country in the treatment and recycling of plastic waste. In particular, this country uses very little primary plastic and has a uniform policy of using plastic bottles.

Germany adopts a policy of buying a plastic drinks, and consumers will have to pay extra for another plastic bottle.

Then you can bring the bottle to the supermarket, store... to get your money back. Germany's goal is to try to recycle 98% of plastic bottles in supermarkets, and increase the use of environmentally friendly packaging...

Returning to this fact in our country, every year Ho Chi Minh City has to spend a lot of budget on waste treatment, especially plastic waste in canals and rivers.

From the lack of awareness and indiscriminate littering, many people have contributed to turning many canals of Ho Chi Minh City into black canals, causing serious pollution, and greatly affecting the living environment of the community.

Although knowing that all types of garbage are toxic, it is clear that plastic waste is a difficult problem to handle and causes long-term harm to the environment.

I very much hope that the authorities will coordinate with local authorities to strictly implement the separation of waste at the source and impose stricter penalties on littering, especially plastic waste, which is causing serious pollution in Vietnam. channel lines.

Ho Chi Minh City stops producing plastic packaging, stops importing single-use plastic products

The People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City has issued a Plan to strengthen the management, reduction, reuse, recycling, and treatment of plastic waste in Ho Chi Minh City from 2022 to 2025, with a vision to 2030.

Accordingly, Ho Chi Minh City strives to minimize the use of single-use plastic products and biodegradable plastic packaging by 2030. Stop the production and import of disposable plastic products, non-biodegradable plastic packaging, and products and goods containing microplastics...

At the same time, Ho Chi Minh City will reduce 75% of plastic waste generated on Can Gio sea. Request to collect, reuse, recycle and treat 100% of discarded fishing gear, and stop disposing of fishing gear directly into Can Gio sea.

Via: tuoitre.vn