2.4.5 Solutions to Marine Plastic Debris
To solve the marine plastic debris in the long term, policies must be formulated,
implemented, monitored, and applied in different areas of management and daily life
such as law and regulation on use of safe chemicals, product design, coastal
management, waste management, and consumer whistle blowing and protection.
To minimize or reduce plastic garbage in the marine ecosystem, concerted efforts
must be made to lessen the quantity of plastics entering the ocean, reduce the damage
caused by plastics, and clean up the plastic debris already present in the ocean and
the coastlines. Further research in the greener production, consumption, disposal,
and impacts of plastics on the surrounding areas, and the environment, must be
stepped-up. Latest technology can be harnessed for the reduction of harms caused by
plastics, or for the collection, identification and cleaning of plastics to mitigate any
potential hazards.
The origin of aquatic plastic wastes is the customer products and plastic packing
and containers. Production-consumption-waste chain is a linear, one way track,
which ends in the ocean. A significant surge of interest can be seen in the recycling
of wastes and plastics, but the recycled material is perceived as having inferior and
substandard quality when compared to the new or virgin material. The shift of focus
to the development of biopolymers that are biodegradable and as alternatives to
plastics is one of the strategy. There is however a genuine concern about the
economics of the bioplastic production. Also the possibility of the by-products
from the degradation of the bioplastics into micro- and nano-bioplastics later may
also pose a threat to the living organisms and eco-system, especially if exceeding the
threshold levels. Hence, the emphasis should be on the biocompatible, non-toxic and
degrable plastics. Another potential route is to change the design of products, such
that it will lower the plastic content, but with increased durability, reusability and
recyclability. The product design should incorporate those elements without affecting the product quality and usability, such as producing textile that sheds less fibers
and dyes in the washing process to reduce the environmental load.
Putting a complete ban or limiting the availability of plastic goods, or imposing
high taxes on plastic products are the best methods to lessen the plastic debris. The
use of microbeads, plastic straws, and non-environmentally-friendly shopping
begs and utensils should be met with some form of economic penalties, on the
producers and the customers alike. Incentives should be provided for the recovery,
recycling, and deposition of the used plastic products such as the plastic containers
and bottles, at the community-based collection centers. The monitoring and evaluation standards should be put in place on waste segregation and the scale of the debris
inputs. Research on the waste control before and after the product ban, the use of
definite sampling and statistics, with record and documentation, should be promoted
and supported, to ensure the success of the policy implemented.
80
Z. Tahir et al.
To solve the marine plastic debris in the long term, policies must be formulated,
implemented, monitored, and applied in different areas of management and daily life
such as law and regulation on use of safe chemicals, product design, coastal
management, waste management, and consumer whistle blowing and protection.
To minimize or reduce plastic garbage in the marine ecosystem, concerted efforts
must be made to lessen the quantity of plastics entering the ocean, reduce the damage
caused by plastics, and clean up the plastic debris already present in the ocean and
the coastlines. Further research in the greener production, consumption, disposal,
and impacts of plastics on the surrounding areas, and the environment, must be
stepped-up. Latest technology can be harnessed for the reduction of harms caused by
plastics, or for the collection, identification and cleaning of plastics to mitigate any
potential hazards.
The origin of aquatic plastic wastes is the customer products and plastic packing
and containers. Production-consumption-waste chain is a linear, one way track,
which ends in the ocean. A significant surge of interest can be seen in the recycling
of wastes and plastics, but the recycled material is perceived as having inferior and
substandard quality when compared to the new or virgin material. The shift of focus
to the development of biopolymers that are biodegradable and as alternatives to
plastics is one of the strategy. There is however a genuine concern about the
economics of the bioplastic production. Also the possibility of the by-products
from the degradation of the bioplastics into micro- and nano-bioplastics later may
also pose a threat to the living organisms and eco-system, especially if exceeding the
threshold levels. Hence, the emphasis should be on the biocompatible, non-toxic and
degrable plastics. Another potential route is to change the design of products, such
that it will lower the plastic content, but with increased durability, reusability and
recyclability. The product design should incorporate those elements without affecting the product quality and usability, such as producing textile that sheds less fibers
and dyes in the washing process to reduce the environmental load.
Putting a complete ban or limiting the availability of plastic goods, or imposing
high taxes on plastic products are the best methods to lessen the plastic debris. The
use of microbeads, plastic straws, and non-environmentally-friendly shopping
begs and utensils should be met with some form of economic penalties, on the
producers and the customers alike. Incentives should be provided for the recovery,
recycling, and deposition of the used plastic products such as the plastic containers
and bottles, at the community-based collection centers. The monitoring and evaluation standards should be put in place on waste segregation and the scale of the debris
inputs. Research on the waste control before and after the product ban, the use of
definite sampling and statistics, with record and documentation, should be promoted
and supported, to ensure the success of the policy implemented.
80
Z. Tahir et al.