Plastic policies
PLASTIC, the bane of environmentalists worldwide, is on an upward swing in India. By 2000 AD, the per capita consumption level of plastic in the country is expected to go up to 2.5 kg from the present 1.4 kg.
This would prop up the Indian plastic industry whose investment is expected to reach us $5 billion by the end of the century from the present us $1.7 billion. This was stated at a recent meeting in Madras by K K Mathur, secretary, department of chemicals and petro-chemicals.
Plastic is seen as an utility item for almost every industry. New trends in the plastic industry, Re the modification of polymers, could lead to more ingenuous products.
As for the thorny issue of plastic disposal, a proper policy, keeping in mind ragpickers whose living conditions need to be upgraded, has to be framed. Storage conditions for plastic wastes also need improvement as plastic is a highly inflammable material. Plastic recycle units have to be brought on par with current technologies prevalent abroad in order to restore the original properties of plastic to nearly 80 to 90 per cent.
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