Our lifestyle and garbage: Ramesh Shrestha

Our goal of development has skyrocketed in recent decades contributing to the welfare of human beings globally. The outcomes can be seen in extending life expectancy at birth, minimising communicable diseases, and many more positive results.One byproduct of development we have seriously overlooked to address is the amount of garbage we generate accompanying our path of development.

It is not difficult to conclude that our lifestyle is directly proportional to the amount of garbage we generate. There have been many discussions on recycling and reusing but in reality, the initiatives thus far remain bare minimum. What is unmistakable is that our consumption-based lifestyle will continue to generate garbage with negative consequences on the health of nature and all living beings on Earth. People prioritise convenience rather than sustenance because people (majority) can afford it. It is easier for people to replace than repair & reuse. How much capacity does nature have to absorb all kinds of garbage we generate?

Types of waste

Municipalities globally have classified garbage as organics waste (kitchen and other household waste), recyclable waste (plastics, glass, metals, paper products), hazardous waste (chemicals and products containing chemicals) and electronic waste (computers, phones, TVs, solar cells, batteries, electronic and electric products), medical waste from hospitals & health clinics and industrial waste from various industries. This classification was done specifically for safe disposal and possibility of recycling. Despite many international agreements and ambition, only a limited amount of waste products is recycled due to reasons of logistics and cost. Most of the garbage eventually ends up in landfills and oceans by way of waterways.

The issues not well understood

While it is fashionable to talk about recycling, what people are unable to process is that a lot of products we dump in garbage bins are not recyclable and also not worth recycling due to economic reasons. Products such as packaging materials made of aluminum sheets coated with plastic, paper cups lined with plastics, padded envelopes, diapers, etc. are not recyclable. There are thousands of varieties of plastics products made up of different types of polymers. For the purpose of recycling each type of plastic has to be sorted, which is an overwhelming task. In addition, every plastic product contains large varieties of flammable chemical additives used for colours, flexibility and hardness. Based on expert opinions these products simply cannot be recycled. We see many products with recyclable signs – a 3-arrow cycle printed. Frankly it is simply deceiving people as every recyclable material cannot be recycled. Plastic is not biodegradable. It simply turns into nano and microparticles over time; single use plastic bags take 20 years while plastic water bottles take 450 years to turn into nano and micro particles.

Technology has existed to convert organic waste (municipal sewerage) into methane gas since the 1930s. Technology has also existed to convert garbage to generate energy since the 1970s. China and Sweden are leading examples for generating energy from garbage. Shanghai (China) has the largest garbage to energy plant that consumes 6000 tons of garbage daily that generates 1.5 billion kilowatts hours of energy and the second largest plant in Shenzhen consumes 5000 tonnes of garbage daily. The ash produced after incinerating garbage is used as fertiliser after chemical safety tests. (Medical waste is incinerated separately as it produces harmful gases.)

No win situation

Energy generated by incinerating garbage is appealing but it has some negative consequences too. The incineration of garbage produces harmful gases which pollutes the environment. The ash produced after incineration may also contain heavy metals such as lead, mercury, etc. Such ash must be tested before using as fertiliser to avoid contamination of ground water through seepages. Exposure to contaminated air and soil is harmful to human health. A positive aspect of burning garbage is that the volume of solid waste is significantly in the form of ash.

We are caught in a cycle of dilemma as the majority of the waste we generate cannot be recycled, and the cost of recycling is high for whatever is recyclable. Industries also find manufacturing new products easier than recycling. Meanwhile people may find brand new products more attractive than buying recycled products, such as buying a refurbished mobile phone. One may want to repair but may refrain from buying a refurbished product. It is simply human psychology.

What to do then?

A wishful thinking is that industries should stop using excessive amounts of packaging materials. At the same time plastic should be replaced by paper wherever possible. It will increase paper production which should be compensated by increasing tree plantation and create special plantation zones for planting trees just for the paper industry. Paper industries waste can be safely treated before disposal.

Another initiative required is for people to reduce excessive consumption. What will it take for people to make intentional choices on a daily basis to review our material needs and possessions? People must decide what adds value to life. We do not need every new model of products introduced in the market every new season. People must get rid of ideas of wanting things that just have window dressing values. Every decision we make to eat, drink, wear, travel, etc. has a cost to the environment in the form of greenhouse gas emission. Everything we do also has a monetary cost and time. The money and time we spent on wasteful material is a loss of opportunity for something more beneficial. Our material culture pushes us to spend our time and money on things that we do not need. The idea is to stop wasting time and money on things we can live without. We buy 'things' because the TV ad makes it look good on us. We have to stop being part of this unchecked consumer world. It needs everyone's conscious decision.

We have been blinded by the media promoting an unachievable utopian lifestyle. The TV ads would suggest a separate pair of shoes for every suit we own and for every occasion and for different times of the day. We are persuaded to adapt to a style and design that changes every few months. We must be able to distinguish between what we need against what we are pushed by marketeers - nice but not necessary. We live in a world glamourized by celebrities. The TV shows, magazines and movies bring them to us every hour of the day in every possible media in our homes – from TikTok to movie theatres. People envy them and look up to them as role models. This dream is further amplified by the idea of individualism 'you can be what you want to be'! This consumer culture is even destabilising people's mental state while chasing illusive success, glamour, and fame, which the majority cannot afford. People must realise that success, glamour, and fame are temporary while the long-lasting choice is balancing life with nature and reality.

Children must be made aware

Every child in schools must be made to understand that nature can absorb only organic and biodegradable products such as paper products and food waste, which will be broken by bacteria and fungus into nutrients and mixed with soil. All other synthetic products such as plastic, glass, metals, etc. will never be broken down and absorbed by nature. It stays there and destroys our food chain. This is because nature also has its limitations – a lesson for the future generation. Science cannot solve all problems, at least not yet.

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