Say No to Plastic Bags

Say No to Plastic Bags

The students of MBIS participated in a Say No to Plastic Bags campaign, where they took to the streets to educate people about the harmful impact of plastic on the environment.

The Primary section of Grades 4 & 5 visited several outlets at Inorbit Mall like Ferns & Petals, French Connection, Body including the chemist, bank and a couple of salons. They spoke to people and sought their support in the “Say No to Plastic Bags” campaign. They also distributed cloth bags on this field visit, so far they have distributed 630 cloth bags and 1500 paper bags. The students of MBIS were very enthusiastic and felt a sense of satisfaction in playing their role in the battle against plastic.

There is an increasing concern about the widespread use of plastic bags in our day-to-day lives. Single-use plastics of any kind, including grocery bags, cutlery, straws and coffee cups are sources of land-based and marine pollution. Mumbai’s beaches, nullahs, and garbage dumps are overflowing with colourful plastic bags, bottles and food packages, that do not decompose for a significant period of time.

Plastic now pollutes practically every corner of the earth and the impact is highly damaging. Research shows that a vast proportion of fish in the sea would have consumed plastic, while seabirds feed it to their chicks. In addition, a large number of marine animals get entangled and trapped in plastic waste often leading to their deaths. “One of the most ubiquitous and long-lasting recent changes to the surface of our planet is the accumulation and fragmentation of plastics,” wrote David Barnes, a lead author and researcher for the British Antarctic Survey. The report was published this month in a theme issue of Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society B, a scientific journal.

The amount of plastic manufactured in the first ten years of this century eclipses the total produced in the entire last century. As plastics grow in volume at a rate of about nine per cent each year, one solution is to treat plastic as a reusable material rather than as a disposable commodity. That means making plastic more easily recyclable from the get-go by using fewer materials in the manufacturing process and increasing recycling facility availability.

Increasing the availability of biodegradable plastic, which can be made from renewable materials from plants such as corn and soy, is another option.

The Government of Maharashtra is in the process of implementing a ban to tackle the plastic menace and the students of MBIS are playing their role in the battle against plastic.

Let’s Say No to Plastic Bags and switch to safer alternatives for a better, greener tomorrow.

Reference Material: http://www.ehn.org/plastic-environmental-impact-2501923191.html

For more information on MBIS: https://www.mbis.org.in/