How does our wildlife benefit from plastic waste management?

The plague of plastic has been upon us for years now. What was once discovered as a material with benefits like water proof, lightweight, easily moldable, easy to use, and cost effective; has now become a material which is causing the earth to die. Plastic is not biodegradable and lives in our lands and oceans after being discarded. Research has found that micro plastics, which are essentially broken down plastic elements, are harder to deal with as these small elements get into food, land, oceans, and water without noticing. They then create problems like blocking pores of the land and oceans and causing various diseases in humans and animals.

Micro plastics have become a part of the land and water ecosystem. When we take Bangalore, the population and urbanisation has increased. It is an ever evolving phenomenon. Climate change is becoming apparent. Many Bangaloreans have shared their grief and sorrow about the weather and how they can notice the greenery being gone and the pollution being increased. One of the other major changes is the increase in plastic consumption. Companies and supermarkets wrap everything in plastic, including fruits and vegetables which can be bought open in a cloth or paper bag. The packaging material is made of plastic, so are 1 litre water bottles, cold drink bottles, and food items. As we become busy in our professional and personal life, we do not pay attention to where our waste is going.

Let's understand how plastic is affecting animals, birds and our ecosystem.

In the wild, animals are not able to differentiate between plastic and food. Since they forage for food, they likely eat whatever is available. You must have seen dogs and cows eating food from dustbins. Even parakeets and macaques eat plastic thinking it to be food. This causes them to either choke or develop intestinal obstruction. In rare cases when cows are operated for plastic, there are tons of it which is removed. This surgery is risky, and the animal/bird might not even survive. Furthermore, removing the plastic from their intestine does not guarantee that their functioning will go back to normal. The micro plastics have already everlasting impacts.

Plastic straws go into aquatic ecosystems and cause a lot of problems like getting stuck in a terrapins throat or nostrils which can be fatal. This again causes choking and difficulty in breathing. Wires or threads made of plastic can entangle the legs or neck of the birds and smaller animals which will lead to complete necrosis of the limb or wing and patagium tear. When these strings are wrapped in trees or thrown away carelessly in bird populated habitat, it leads to entanglement and consumption of plastic.

Microplastic can enter the food chain and cause bioaccumulation. It gets accumulated in the animals' body and gets to higher strata in the food chain or food web. The chemicals used in processing of plastic causes the problem of biomagnification. This essentially means that from the first creature of the food chain to the last, everyone's lifespan is shortened because of the consumption of plastic.

Management of Plastic

We can deal with the plastic plague when we begin to take responsibility for our own waste. Globalisation has helped people connect, so why don't we connect with people who have so many ways for us to go green?! Today, there are many influencers who share their knowledge about how to embrace living a zero waste life and ways to deal with non-biodegradable waste.

Another important tip to separate the type of plastic before disposal. Segregating the plastic will help you to sell/donate plastic waste so that it can be recycled. Saahas Zero Waste is an organisation which recycles many kinds of plastic. Ecokaari takes packaging plastic as a donation, recycles them into fabric and creates many products which can be used for a long time!

It is always better to focus on the "reduce" aspect of the 3Rs. To reduce the use of plastic, you can

● Carry your own water bottle and avoid buying branded water

● Take your own containers or reusable plastic to buy groceries. Stores like Organic Mandhya and Reliance Fresh have options to take some materials in your containers. This greatly decreases plastic consumption.

● Purchase a steel straw and keep it in your purse/bag along with a steel spoon and fork to avoid getting plastic ones.

● Use cloth bags everywhere instead of getting plastic ones

Reducing plastic consumption and focusing on plastic waste management will help reduce the amount of micro plastics that harm the aquatic and land urban wildlife. Plastic management is one of the many important things we need to do to make our planet healthy. Let's start small, let's start now!

Authored by Praanjali Shukla, Volunteer at PfA Bangalore