Urban sprawl is when towns or cities grow bigger and their boundaries expand. Clearing land for urban development is a major threat to the plants and biodiversity. Imagine how much of green habitat must have been destroyed due to the fastest growing cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
Urban areas are often established near fresh water and more fertile soils; so, they are highly liveable regions for many living beings. When urban sprawl happens, some animals are driven out and some plants don’t survive. Perhaps this is what has been happening over the last three decades with the habitat patterns in Bhubaneswar-Cuttack urban sprawl.
The unsustainable urbanisation has left almost all areas with plastic waste. Scientists across the globe have established links between exposure from chemical additives that leech from plastics and obesity, diabetes, poor brain health and even cancer. Research is still being done on the effects microplastics have on human health and we do not yet know how dangerous they are. Additionally, due to limited and inefficient waste management infrastructure, 40 percent of the world’s garbage is burnt, 12 percent of which consists of plastic.
The burning of plastic waste has multiple health impacts, including increasing the risk of heart diseases and aggravating respiratory problems, such as asthma and emphysema. In Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, polythene bags and their burning have been banned. However, in reality, polythene is used massively and garbage having plastic in it is dumped irresponsibly, including in the river ecosystem.
While cities across the world have derived great benefits from the use of plastics, which have transformed people’s everyday lives, the negative ecological effects and adverse impact on the environment from their misuse and overuse cannot be overlooked. Plastic remains in the environment for a long time; it cannot biodegrade and only breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces.
When plastics decompose, they release chemicals that are hazardous to health, environment and wildlife. Some of the chemicals released when plastic-containing waste is burned are carcinogenic, such as dioxin – the common name for a group of toxic chemicals. Dioxin is toxic to humans and when inhaled through exposure to fumes can accumulate in the human body and be transmitted from mothers to babies via the placenta. Dioxin attached to dust also mixes with water bodies and crops.
Why is plastic waste dangerous for people living in Bhubaneswar -Cuttack urban sprawl? The answer is simple yet complex. Because some of the waste dumping yards of the past are now playgrounds, parks, even construction sites without treatments. We are not so advanced in conducting joint research involving urban planners and health experts to understand what is happening with the garbage under the and over the surface.
Since plastic was introduced 70 years ago, it has become a part of our everyday life. While plastic is a versatile material that can play an important role in some products, we know that unnecessary or problematic plastic items can have disastrous impacts on our environment and wildlife.
This year’s World Environment Day’s theme was ‘Beat Plastic Pollution.’ Single-use plastic items and packaging still account for 40% of all litter in Bhubaneswar. To help with the issue, we need to stop consuming, manufacturing and importing unnecessary plastics and swap them for more sustainable options.
A local legislation introduced recently on plastic item bans to stop the supply of lightweight plastic bags. However, the ban doesn’t affect single-use items including cotton buds, straws, bowls, plates, stirrers and cutlery, along with expanded polystyrene food service items and microbeads in certain rinse-off personal care products. Which means there is more to do if we want to beat plastic pollution.
The municipal authorities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack must build more robust, effective recycling and waste management systems. Municipal solid waste management is one of the largest contributors to plastic pollution on land and water. The local Government instead of just slapping fines, must promote and incentivise product design that stops single -use plastic products and packaging and encourages circular economy usage among city service providers.
Ban the open burning of waste and strengthen enforcement measures. Similarly, install free public water fountains to encourage people to avoid single-use plastic water bottles. Of course, promote Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) at the local level; so that retailers and producers selling plastic products are held responsible for the pollution their products cause. As a result, producers would introduce incentives to get back plastic once used like milk packets. A single such legislation would carry away half of the garbage reaching municipal waste.
Yes, much more progress is needed, including reducing plastic production and consumption, transforming the whole value chain, efficient, transparent, and forward-looking legislation, and more effective monitoring systems to identify plastic sources, scale and fate while shifting to circular approaches. There is no one solution, but many that must happen simultaneously and immediately.
Well, transitioning to circular approaches and plastic alternatives is critical. This involves a life-cycle approach—one where the impact of all the activities and outcomes associated with the production and consumption of plastic is considered. This includes reassessing raw material extraction and processing, and innovating manufacturing processes, product design, packaging, distribution and end-of-life management, such as segregation, collection, sorting, recycling and disposal. Addressing plastic pollution requires a systemic change, with actions across the life cycle that address its root causes rather than its symptoms.
Cities like Bhubaneswar are on the frontline to address the big challenge, dealing with its urban sprawl and circular economy based urban planning without much delay.
(Dr Rout and Swain are faculty members in Department of Planning, Odisha University of Technology and Research)