Posted on: 11 March, 2020

Author: Nadeem Saifi

As the new decade rolls in, the results of our ever-increasing consumption of plastic and non-biodegradable products have also come around. The planet is in bad shape with the kind of stress we have placed on it by using these products which cannot be degraded and mostly as a byproduct of our consumption. The major chunk of this destruction can be attributed to our recurring use of plastic, which is difficult if not impossible to get rid of. It is omnipresent and can be seen taking up the major portions of landfills, where most of the consumer waste is dumped and left to be dealt with by state bodies. These products do not decompose in a landfill because they are not properly aerated. 20% of all methane emissions are from landfills. This waste has been seeping back to our seas, oceans and lakes for decades. It always finds its way back to us and there isn’t any permanent solution besides recycling. However, it is possible to deal with it in another way to get rid of this problem is to shift away from plastics, and towards sustainable and reusable products. At the end of its life, a product of this category is easily absorbed by several natural degradation processes and contributes positively to the area it is put in. The need for alternatives to plastic-based items hardly needs emphasising, but making products that last longer and are reusable satisfactorily has been somewhat of a struggle. Thus it is important to point out the progress in this arena. These reusable products are often made from naturally sourced raw materials to ensure that they become a part of the biodegradable waste at the end of their life. As an example consider the wheat stalk, considered to be waste after crops are harvested. These wheat stalks can be processed and machined to make durable household items like cups. These are further processed to suit the design and size requirements and finally shaped into the final product. They are reusable and thus can replace their plastic counterparts easily. At the end of their life, they can be easily disposed of the biodegradable waste bins and reduce the burden of waste management on local bodies. Another material that is used to make reusable products is bamboo fibre. Again this is a naturally sourced material but makes for satisfactorily reusable products. Like the wheat stalk, it too is in the biodegradable category and can be safely disposed of as such. Such options are real alternatives to the damaging plastics. Although it will be long before plastics are completely phased out by biodegradable, compostable FMCGs, such grassroots efforts are integral to speed up these changes. Nowadays, people are gravitating towards the zero waste in which the companies are creating the products which can be used again and again. In this process, people are creating products which have limited life which can be composted or recycled instead of going to the landfills. Zero waste coffee shops are the new trend in accepting zero waste products and in the movement of making the world plastic-free. These cafes are embracing the products which don’t produce waste and mainly these are the plantable seed products which once used and then they can be planted. These cafes are embracing the reusable straws and ditching the plastic straws. We can also save about millions of tonnes of trash by purchasing fresh food instead of packaged food, making our own detergent and cleaners. Many of the solutions to cutting water use practices that were commonplace before the era of plastics and disposable products. This can save our planet from the harm which has already been done by the non-biodegradable products. We should start doing something otherwise the planet will face irreversible harm. Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com My name is Nadeem Saifi I am graduate from Delhi University and I am working as a Digital Marketing Strategist and content marketing expert. I have experience in various domains and now I am working for a different domain which is about Zero Waste Products and this is a very cool concept and a growing industry as well.