New Delhi – India should start to see waste as a wealth like many of the countries in the west do, secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change C.K.Mishra said..
Mishra said that countries have been able to innovate and bring technologies to solve the plastic waste generation problem and it was time that the industry in India did the same.
The secretary was speaking at the plastic waste dialogue which was organised by WeCare and India CSR in New Delhi.
Mishra said that generation of plastic was not a bad thing until it reached lands, rivers and oceans unattended. While the growth was important, it was critical for the industry and the civil society to act responsibly.
Giving example of the cement industry which was using plastic waste as a fuel, the secretary said that, more industries should emulate it. While the industry was currently using only 5% of the fuel require from the plastic waste, it could increase that to 25-30%, the secretary said.
“Focus should shift from production to recycling,” Mishra added.
He also said that there was opportunity for the industry to grow as the country was generating enough plastic. He also said that the decision to ban plastic waste import in the country despite industry’s insistence to not do it was a conscious one. The government would not allow the country to become a dumping ground of waste for other countries.
The Plastic Waste Dialogue is being hosted in collaboration with Gonative and United Way India .
of the Red Fort during his Independence Day speech, it calls for a collective action from all of us, to
be a part of the solution rather than just the problem,” India CSR Founder and Managing Editor said while speaking at the occasion.
“India CSR has not only been a publication which writes about sustainability and corporate social responsibility, but we have been a great proponent of environmental sustainability and it is for the very reason we have organised a dialogue which will motivate us all to move at least one step forward from where we are, at this point-in-time,” Kumar said.
“Though our on-year consumption of plastic is growing and is likely to grow further, the good news is that we are recycling more plastic than we were ever recycling. Infact, the overall waste management industry in India is likely to attain a worth of USD 13.6 billion by 2025, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 7.2%.,” he said
“The government have to enable an environment where sustainable measures could be taken by way of legislations and strict enforcement, corporate sector and NGOs will have to create solutions while the public at large has to take it upon itself to practice at individual levels,” he further added.
Though we need to do much more on this, I can say this with some authority that many corporate houses especially the ones present here have started taking steps towards responsible consumption and plastic waste mitigation.
The Dialogue will involve some of the most reputable and competent national and world-renowned speakers from industries, CSR, non-profit organizations, international agencies, academia, and research organisations.
The day-long affair will see some of the most powerful voices in government, industry, non-governmental organisations, international agencies, academia, and research organisations.
India’s annual plastic consumption at 16.5 million tn is expected to cross 20 million tn by 2020 according to a report.
Over 80% of the total plastic produced in India is discarded which ends up filling landfills, choking drains and eventually flowing in rivers and seas where it is ingested by marine animals.
It leaches into soil and water, contaminating the natural environment with poisonous dioxins.
Effective management of plastic waste therefore is crucial to do away with environmental hazard caused by plastics.
As the dialogue progresses, a dance performance by Delhi street children on plastic use and waste
mitigation will be on display. The performance is choreographed by a Delhi-based not-for-profit –
Flying Feet.
There will also be exhibition by Cartoonist and Editor of Cartoon Watch Shri Triambak Sharma ji.
