Just 10 days of plastic bags used in Vietnam is long enough to reach the moon.

TPO - The invention of plastic has brought many benefits to humans, but along with that are consequences of environmental pollution and health impacts. It is estimated that in just over 1 week, the amount of plastic waste in the form of nylon bags in Vietnam is long enough to reach the moon. Reducing plastic emissions is an urgent issue that requires all businesses and people to implement.

TPO - The invention of plastic has brought many benefits to humans, but along with that are consequences of environmental pollution and health impacts. It is estimated that in just over 1 week, the amount of plastic waste in the form of nylon bags in Vietnam is long enough to reach the moon. Reducing plastic emissions is an urgent issue that requires all businesses and people to implement.

On October 24, at Van Lang University in Ho Chi Minh City, a workshop was held to raise awareness about waste collection and recycling with the theme “The journey of regeneration for a green Vietnam”. According to information from the workshop, since 1840, humans have invented plastic, this material has been increasingly used and exists in the environment, creating a type of sustainable, difficult-to-decompose waste.

If in 1950 the world only had about 1.5 million tons of plastic, by 2024 the world had more than 400 million tons of plastic. Today, people are beginning to realize that plastic production and consumption cause many consequences. Statistics show that about 75% of plastic after use has become waste, polluting the environment. Microplastics are entering the human food chain and penetrating the human body, causing health consequences when affecting the digestive system, cardiovascular system, causing cancer...

Waste in Vietnam is recycled at a low level due to lack of classification and low recycling technology, which was raised by speakers at the conference.

At the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Thi, Lecturer at the University of Natural Resources and Environment (Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment) said: “In Vietnam, in 1991, an average person used about 3.8 kg of plastic, but now it is estimated that each person has used about 54 kg of plastic in a year. Currently, each year the whole country uses about 938 million plastic bags. With this amount, it is estimated that in just 10 days, the number of plastic bags used in Vietnam is enough to connect the distance from the earth to the moon.”

The most widely used plastic products are bottles and packaging. Currently, nationwide, solid waste in general and plastic in particular are mainly collected and buried, recycled waste accounts for only a very low volume of about 2% of the total plastic emissions. The reason is that collection is difficult and recycling technology is still low.

Reducing plastic emissions is an urgent global issue to protect the living environment (illustrative photo)

Talking about the difficulties in collecting and recycling waste, Mr. Hoang Duc Vuong, Owner of VietCycle Joint Stock Company said: “Waste classification in Vietnam is currently only in its pilot phase, and waste is mixed with many impurities, making it difficult to collect and process, causing many difficulties for recycling. Therefore, recycled materials in Vietnam are of very low quality.”

To reduce the impact on the environment, manufacturing units are making efforts to apply technology to recycling packaging by using new materials such as paper packaging, natural materials that are easily biodegradable or reducing the weight of plastic in each product. Mr. Do Thai Vuong, Deputy General Director of Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam, said that each year the company brings more than 1 billion plastic bottles to the Vietnamese market. By producing ultra-thin bottles, the company has reduced 1,000 tons of plastic emissions into the environment each year. In addition to reducing emissions, the company is eliminating all non-recyclable materials in production, collecting used bottles for recycling, circulation, and reducing emissions into the environment.

According to the provisions of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, by December 31, 2024 at the latest, provinces and centrally-run cities must officially implement waste classification at source. This is an important step to reduce waste and protect the environment.

Van Son

Source: https://tienphong.vn/chi-10-ngay-tui-nilon-su-dung-tai-viet-nam-du-dai-noi-toi-mat-trang-post1685205.tpo