Green Plus Issu 14

COLUMN
CAPTAIN PLANET
RAVINDRAN RAMAN KUTTY,
also known as Captain Planet,
who had radio programs in Traxx
FM, Minnal FM, Radio Ibukota, AI
FM and regular TV shows. He was
also responsible in developing the
school students in English,
Tamil. He also developed a pre-
ran environment columns in all the
leading newspapers in English,
Tamil. He also worked with the
writing contest on environment
Tamil school students. He also
has started waste education
programs in the Middle East,
environmental journalist award
Learn, unlearn
and relearn
Malaysians must change habits to bring
about better future for our children
THE recent Selangor government
direction on the possibility
of implementing a
state-wide ban on the usage
of plastics bags, Styrofoam
and other biodegradable
materials is a laudable move in creating a safe,
sound and secure society in facing the surmounting
problems caused by the usage of
such products.
The best way to educate Malaysians on the
perils of plastics is to substitute plastics with
environment-friendly materials like paper and
water soluble materials which degrade much
faster at our landfills.
I must say Malaysians are taking it very easy
when it comes to our environment. Ignoring its
value, we throw our recyclables such as plastics,
metals, papers alongside with all the materials
which soil valuable recyclable wastes.
We cannot deny that plastics are light and
durable; their practical and hygienic standpoint
unarguable, but they are good as well
as dangerous. Society must take the effort
to ensure that all the plastics bags used must
end up in recycling centres rather than landfills.
Residents of Kuala Lumpur alone discard
127,000 kg of plastics, equivalent to RM50
million a year. Plastics left in the landfill take
more than 10,000 years to degrade. Out of the
2,700 tonnes of waste collected from the city,
13% comprises plastics. If these plastics are left
to rest in the landfills, we will not see any solution
to our environmental woes.
I admire the courage of the Selangor government.
However, I urge them to ensure that
they think thoroughly before implementing
the policy. Decreasing the use of plastic bags
and substituting them with paper bags is a good
step, but the effects on the environment must
not be overlooked. The increase in paper bag
usage will also result in an increase in the harvesting
of trees. It must be sternly advised that
the paper bags used are mainly derived from
recyclable material. Hence, this would create
more value and meaning to the replacement
as well as further boost the preservation of our
greenery. It is not the fault of the material, but
that of society who have chosen to ignore the
environment.
The lack of research, proper environmental
awareness and poor enforcement are the main
causes of the increasing wastage going to the
landfills. It is heartening to note that UKM’s
Fuel Cell Institute is seriously looking into converting
plastics into petroleum. This technology,
popular in Japan though founded in the
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Greenplus TM MARCH 2016