Sunday Mid Day, September 11, 2005 article reproduced below: See http://www.mid-day.com/news/city/2005/september/118378.htm
Why we need that plastic surgery By: Janaki Fernandes September 11, 2005 Dear Mr Deshmukh, In the last week of August, you hastily announced a ban on plastic bags. You did not tell us how you planned to implement the ban and who exactly would be penalised for flouting it. When you realised that you had spoken too soon, you announced a 30-day period during which aggrieved parties (I suppose that would mean plastic manufacturers) could come up with possible suggestions and solutions. Since we are getting closer to the deadline (in another fortnight, your 30-day period will come to an end) and we all know how helpless you get when you are forced to deal with bans and deadlines, I feel that as a concerned citizen I should share this information with you. I believe you’ve gone to Delhi to find a solution, but I didn’t have to go very far to find this out. Our neighbouring state Goa has put a plastic ban into place for the last five years. But just announcing a ban on plastics is not enough to curb the increasing plastic menace; our neighbouring state Goa will confirm this. Goa is the only state that has banned the use of bags below 40 microns. It also holds the distinction of coercing bigwigs like Pepsi and Coca-Cola to ensure that the company recycles the pet bottles proliferating the Goan soft drinks market. This small state also boasts of having consumer friendly schemes like buy back policies for plastic milk bags thereby decreasing the garbage menace by almost 75 per cent in the state. It will be years before we can boast of being plastic free; a distinction that Goa has enjoyed for five years now thanks to determined efforts of concerned citizens, active NGOs and a proactive state government. How they got it right One of the biggest lessons to derive from Goa’s sustained plastic free campaign is the active participation of citizens with almost minimal dependence on government bodies. In 1998, environmental NGOs and citizens formed the Goa Environment Federation (GEF). At the first GEF meeting in June 1998, the problem of plastic waste disposal was highlighted as a major environmental problem facing Goa by no less than five NGOs as well as several citizens in written submissions made before the Goa Environment Commission constituted by the GEF. Various PILs forced the problem of plastic waste disposal to be considered as a separate category from general garbage. It was during these proceedings that the Goa state government informed the court that it had notified on January 2000, a committee to look into all aspects of solid waste management in the state, including the relevant laws, and to produce a comprehensive report within three months outlining a scheme of action and various measures to be taken by the different authorities to deal with the problem. Regular meetings of the committee during the next three months, resulted in the finalisation of a report titled ‘Solid Waste Management in the State of Goa’ (SWM Report) which was presented to the court in April 2000. In July, the state Government informed the court that it had accepted the report and would immediately commence steps for its implementation. As a first step, the state Government took a decision to enforce the ban on use of plastic bags below 20 microns from August 15, 2000. The government sought time till December 31 to complete the steps necessary for full implementation of other aspects of the SWM Report which included: l A ban on the use of recycled plastic bags for food items; l Setting up of composting units to take care of biodegradable garbage; l Arranging for the disposal of non-biodegradable garbage to recycling plants outside the state; l Ensuring that Garbage Management Committees are set up in all panchayats and municipalities. It was decided that the anti-plastic campaign would be primarily service-oriented and that GEF would actually organise the clean up of the state. They started a ‘Plastic Free Goa’ (PFG) campaign The PFG campaign, an 80-day programme which was started on October 2, 2000, educated people about the problems of plastic waste disposal and thus encouraged citizens to reduce the use of throwaway plastic items in everyday life. Schools, lay people and citizen groups from all across the state were involved in collecting plastic and dumping them at two sites in North and South Goa earmarked for the project. The awareness programme took the form of door-to-door campaign or citizens’ group discussions or public talks, video film shows, poster campaign, handbills etc. It was hoped that the awareness programme, besides persuading citizens to voluntarily reduce the use of throwaway plastic items, would also result in community initiatives to take care of the plastic waste locally generated. The business community was also persuaded to consider alternatives to marketing their goods using plastic carry bags, plastic cups and other one-time-use plastic items. GEF had a meeting with the then Chief Minister Francisco Sardinha who assured his full support to the campaign. The CM called a meeting of the directors of municipal administration, panchayats, education, tourism, science and technology and other concerned government officials and asked them to immediately inform all municipal councils, panchayats, schools and colleges of the proposed NGO programme and to also ensure that the programme received full cooperation from all government departments. Besides panchayat secretaries, collectors, deputy collectors, excise inspectors and police sub-inspectors were also empowered to act to curb the nuisance. The director of Science, Technology and Environment sanctioned a sum of Rs 1,20,000 which was allocated as grant-in-aid to the PFG campaign through the Goa Foundation. What Goa boasts of today Complete disposal of Pet Bottles by Coke and Pepsi Due to mounting pressure by citizen groups, Coca-Cola set up a plant a few years ago and collection points across Goa where their plastic pet bottles would be collected and shredded in a plant set up by them. “This has been financed completely by Coca-Cola and Pepsi too collects bottles from different collection points across the state. This is in lieu with European standards where it is mandatory for manufacturers to ensure its return and disposal,” says Dr Claude Alvares of the Goa Foundation, one of the NGOs spearheading this campaign. “Today there will be no pet bottles found anywhere in the state. Goa is the only state where this happens,” he adds. Complete ban on bags below 40 microns and recycled bags The state Government has authorized the lowest level of officials from village panchayats to raid and seize plastic bags from offending citizens. The police have to submit regular reports to the state government. “Although a total ban is almost impossible, we ensured that thin coloured bags were completely banned. Goa is the only state that bans use of bags below 40 microns compared to the rest of the country where the ban is on bags below 20 microns,” says Dr N P S Varde from the department of Science and Environment in Goa. Recycling of milk bags Nearly 60 per cent of Goa’s plastic waste was milk bags. “Today the Goa Dairy has a buy-back scheme where citizens are expected to return the bags for milk or cash. Because of the PFG campaign, people understood the need to get rid of plastic. The incentive was just an added advantage,” says Patricia Pinto, an active anti-plastic campaigner. Earmarking of plastic-free zones Today Goa has earmarked their wildlife sanctuaries, beaches and heritage spots as plastic-free zones. Despite all this, the Goans still feel they have a long way to go in ensuring that Goa becomes a plastic free state. They are still thinking up of other alternatives to plastic usage where they can currently see none. If they can do so, Mr Deshmukh, why can’t we? There’s no reason why we can’t make it happen. We’ve got the ideas and the will to make it happen. And you’ve got Mr R R Patil, the man who makes bans a reality. Yours truly, Janaki Fernandes [EMAIL PROTECTED] Maharashtra still elastic on plastic The Maharashtra government has given a 30-day period ending in the last week of September for various parties to come up with possible answers to implementing the plastic ban. The environment department will also take the suggestions of NGOs and concerned citizens to finally formulate a plan to ban or prohibit the use of plastics in the entire state. “We have realized the gravity of the situation and have decided to use a different approach to tackle the problem,” says Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who will comment on the ‘different approach’ only after the 30-day period ends. However he was in Delhi, looking at options to solve the plastic menace in the state. In spite of a successful campaign in Goa, the state has still not liased with them for any suggestions or opinions. “We are waiting for the 30-day period to end only then will concrete plans be drawn,” informs Deshmukh. On being informed about Coca-Cola and Pepsi being involved in recycling plastic bottles, the CM showed ignorance and said that “it was NGOs who had coerced them to do it. So here active participation from all quarters is needed”. What Mah govt is contemplating A new technology developed by a team of entrepreneurs in Bangalore to use waste plastic for construction of roads has caught the government’s attention, which is contemplating to utilise this innovative method extensively across the state. “More than 500 km in Bangalore have used waste plastic for construction of roads as it increases the life of roads three-fold. Besides recycling plastic, the frequency of road repairs would be reduced as the chances of seepage of rain water is minimised due to presence of plastic,” said the CM. What Maharashtra is currently doing Currently the old scheme of seizing and raiding shops using the banned plastic is still operational. Shop-keepers, traders, small retailers and hawkers using plastic bags are fined Rs 5,000 or asked to pay a fine in proportion to the stock of such bags found with them. A third time offender could face a three-month imprisonment. Similarly, people using plastic bags would be fined Rs 1,000. The ban will be enforced through municipal authorities, who carry out raids, said Mr Deshmukh. Adds VN Kalam Patil, deputy municipal commissioner, “We have been continuously conducting raids at ward levels and have seized more than 56 tonnes since May 2005.” However he added that no other orders had been given to intensify the drives.
