Following the State government’s decision to ban plastics, Mumbai University’s Institute of Chemical Technology in Matunga organised a knowledge sharing session on Wednesday to debunk myths about the use of plastics and discuss environment-friendly solutions to the problem.
Vijay Habbu, adjunct professor at the institute, said, “The kind of intuitive knowledge about plastics has not sunk into people’s minds. You can’t compare them with metals, which have been around for ages. They are relatively new materials. Hence, there are a lot of myths revolving around their usage, which is why we need to educate people about it.”
Mr. Habbu said, “Plastic in itself is not what is causing harm. It is citizens like us who are irresponsible and do not recycle it properly.” He said the plastic processing sector in India manufactures 30,000 units every year and provides employment to 11 lakh people.
Mr. Habbu cited the World Health Organization’s monographs on Food Safety in April 2015 to debunk some common myths. He said Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), which is widely used for packaging food and beverages contains no endocrine or estrogen disruptors. He said, “It is a myth that it contains heavy metals. Their presence is counter-productive as it produces haze in a product.”
R.N. Jagtap, professor of paint technology and head of department of polymer and surface engineering, said, “Polyethylene is chemically inert and after use it does not degrade and remains in the environment for over a 100 years. This leads to pollution.” Mr. Jagtap said, “The city generates 7,000 tonnes of waste, but there are only two composters. It will take 60 days for one lot to biodegrade.”
Mr. Japtap said that catalysts could also be created to degrade the polymer. He said that heavy metals could end up contaminating the land and water on degradation. He said, “To provide a solution, we have been working on creating a catalyst for the past seven years. This catalyst will hold more water and improve soil conditions even after degeneration.”
