Green Alternatives to Garbage Bags are Here
QUEEN'S ROAD:Segregation at source fails to achieve any purpose when separated garbage is placed back in plastic bags. Arun Balachandran, his wife and some members of his family started an initiative to find a practical solution to the absence of an alternative material to dispose waste.
Their initiative GreenBUG makes newspaper bags that can be placed inside dustbins, ultimately reducing the amount of plastic reaching landfills.
“I heard complaints from residents in Marathahalli about how they wanted an alternative to plastic bags but could not find one. I tried to locate a service or a vendor selling paper products, but found none,” Arun says. Out of necessity, he and his family got proactive and started their own project.
The team that actively manages GreenBUG has Arun and wife Jyothi Balachandra, his brother Ajit and his wife Sreelatha Balachandra.
The four of them also oversee the packaging.‘’We place the newspapers on handmade stencils, give them a form and a shape and neatly package together 15 bags for a small purchase and a package of 70 for anyone who wants a bulk quantity,” he explains.
The team was contemplating where to draw helping hands from when they heard from a relative about the terrible conditions that women working in the fields of Madanapali village, Andhra Pradesh, were facing because of poor rains.
“We thought they could be trained. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship,” says Arun.
In Karnataka, they trained disadvantaged women with the help of APSA (The Association for Promoting Social Action)and Samarthan. “So far, we have conducted two training sessions comprising 60 women. Some of them drop out for personal reasons. More than half have stayed and help us out,” Arun shares.
The women are allowed to work in their home environment at their convenience and are responsible for creating the stencil that holds the bag together.
Guidelines on how to handle the replacement to plastic are specified on the backside of the covers.
1) Insert the GreenBUG bag into the bin 2) Turn bag over the edges to anchor it in place 3) Expand bag's capacity by spreading the insides into waste bin shape. 4) Avoid oil, strained tea bags and flowing water
GreenBUG is available at The Eco Store and Towness.co.in
For more information, contact: +91 98457 34409
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/grnBUG