Paragraph Writing
Composition / Essay Writing
BANNING OF POLYBAGS
Chemically polythene is a polymer of ethylene of high molecular weight. The plastic quality of polythene made it suitable for producing bags, which are light in weight, durable, waterproof, low cost and easy to use for varied purpose. Polythene is largely used for packaging purpose and most widely used for carrying shopping items. But there are many problems of using polybags.
There is risk of food-stuff getting contaminated when wrapped in coloured polythene. Polythene may cause dermatitis due to prolonged contact with skin. Polythene is not biodegradable, it lowers the fertility of the soil, blocks the urban sewerage system and cause siltation in the waterways. When burnt, polythene materials produce substance like hydrogen cyanide, a highly toxic chemical. The thrown away polybags remain in the soil for years together without degradation. Air and water cannot pass early into the soil due to presence of non-porous polythene. Soil also is not recharged with nutrients, as it remains deprived from sufficient sunlight due to presence of polythene in the ground. Thus the soil fertility is reduced causing decline in agricultural production. Scientists have time and again warned that waste polythene bags are responsible for causing water stagnation in the drains, ditches and pot-holes here and there. Such stagnant water provides a good breeding ground for the mosquitoes resulting in increased incidences of diseases like malaria, filaria, dengue, and encephalitis. Polythene also causes adverse impact on animal life and the biodiversity. Domestic animals often ingest polythene bags containing organic waste or foodstuff. It may cause intestinal obstruction and death in certain cases. Scavenger birds like the crows find it difficult to collect food from the dustbin and disposal sites if the domestic waste is disposed of in polybags. The organic waste thrown in ploybags and obstructs the organic substance from getting transformed to plant chain.
To the utter relief of the citizens, the government finally ordered a ban on the use and marketing of polythene shopping bags throughout the country with effect from March 1, 2002. It is encouraging that the decision of the government was highly appreciated and welcomed by the citizens particularly the advocacy groups who continued persistent campaign against polythene.
Banning of Polybags or, Problems of Polybags
Polybags are the major source of pollution. Polybags are such kind of bags as 'are made of polythene became very popular with us. The use of polythene is a threat to our environment and has become a social problem. It is a matter of joy that the Govt. has at last banned polybags.
People were demanding to stop the production, use and marketing of polybags. Both the Prime Minister and minister for the Environment and Forest took the decision to ban polybags in the meeting. According to the decision, it is banned firstly from Dhaka city from 1st January, 2002 and from 1st March from the entire country.
On an average 60 lac polybags were being used everyday only in Dhaka city. Most of the used polybags were thrown out here and there. Then the polybags block- sewerage pipes and the regular flow of the drain water, which results in the complete disruption of the drainage system.
Many low-lying areas in the cities frequently go under water because of the polythene bags. For instance, we can recall the longest lasting flood in 1998. Flood water remained in many parts of Dhaka for over two months. It is also a great threat to our cultivable land. Whenever these polybags go inside the cultivable land, it reduces less its fertility and crops do not grow in such lands. Polybags remain unchanged like a curtain through which nothing can pass. It can not mix with soil. It spreads skin disease and causes harm to nutrition of trees. Air is polluted while these polybags are being burned. It also causes some serious diseases like tuberculosis and cancer. On the contrary, our traditional jute and cloth bags have lost their market because of the uses of polythene.
However, it is a burning question for us that we should stop the production, uses and marketing of polybags immediately and keep our environment free from polybags.
THE PROBLEMS OF USING POLYBAGS
Chemically polythene is a polymer of ethylene of high molecular weight. It is a thermoplastic material which when heated gets softened due to weakening of intermolecular forces and thus melts. On cooling, the melted molecules get solidified again. The plastic quality of polythene made it suitable for producing bags, which are light in weight, durable, waterproof, low cost and easy to use for varied purpose. Polythene is largely used for packaging purpose and most widely used for carrying shopping items.
Polythene was developed as chemical compound in the US in the middle of last century. The production and marketing however, started in 1985 in the USA while it was introduced in Bangladesh in 1982.
Survey reports showed that the daily use of polythene shopping bags was as high as 9 million pieces throughout the country while the largest number of 6 million pieces was used in Dhaka city alone. It cost Bangladesh taka about 1000 million in foreign currency is to import raw material.
The manufacturing process of polythene does not yield complete polymerization but create different kinds of monomeric vinyl chlorides. According to scientists, heavy concentration of vinyl chlorides is highly toxic. Most of the brightly coloured polythene bags contain agents like lead and cadmium. There is risk of food-stuff getting contaminated when wrapped in coloured polythene. Polythene may cause dermatitis due to prolonged contact with skin.
Since polythene is not biodegradable, it lowers the fertility of the soil, blocks the urban sewerage system and cause siltation in the waterways. When burnt, polythene materials produce substance like hydrogen cyanide, a highly toxic chemical.
The thrown away polybags remain in the soil for years together without degradation. Air and water cannot pass early into the soil due to presence of non-porous polythene. Soil also is not recharged with nutrients, as it remains deprived from sufficient sunlight due to presence of polythene in the ground. Thus the soil fertility is reduced causing decline in agricultural production.
Scientists have time and again warned that waste polythene bags are responsible for causing water stagnation in the drains, ditches and potholes here and there. Such stagnant water provides a good breeding ground for the mosquitoes resulting in increased incidences of diseases like malaria, filaria, dengue, and encephalitis.
Polythene also causes adverse impact on animal life and the biodiversity. Domestic animals often ingest polythene bags containing organic waste or foodstuff. It may cause intestinal obstruction and death in certain cases.
Scavenger birds like the crows find it difficult to collect food from the dustbin and disposal sites if the domestic waste is disposed of in polybags. The organic waste thrown in polybags and obstructs the organic substance from getting transformed to plant chain.
To the utter relief of the citizens, the government finally ordered a ban on the use and marketing of polythene shopping bags throughout the country with effect from March 1, 2002. Earlier, a partial ban came into effect in Dhaka from January 1 this year.
It is encouraging that the decision of the government was highly appreciated and welcomed by the citizens particularly the advocacy groups who continued persistent campaign against polythene.
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