CHENNAI: Kuppai Matters (KM), an initiative by the Citizen Consumer and Civic Action Group (CAG), along with city-based citizen groups Arappor Iyakkam and Chitlapakkam Rising, on Sunday audited the garbage piled in the Chitlapakkam and Pallavaram lakes.Ahead of the World Environment Day on June 5, which is hosted by India, the group aims to have first-hand data on waste polluting waterbodies across the country. The theme for this year is ‘Beat Plastic Pollution.’
With garbage collected in at least five 50-kg rice bags as the sample, the group categorises the waste piled in waterbodies into six types — unbranded plastic, branded plastic, polystyrene, glass metals, rubber and textile.Said Kripa Ramachandran, researcher, CAG: “The consumer is actually at the end of the value chain. Instead of questioning the consumers about their role, businesses should be held accountable for generation of plastic waste.”
The initiative, called the ‘Waste and the Brand audit’, is part of a pan-India audit led by Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Asia Pacific. In Chennai, four waterbodies — Srinivasapuram, Elliot’s beach, Chitlapakkam and Pallavaram lakes — have been audited so far.According to Sunil Jayaram, a member of Chitlapakkam Rising, who was part of the audit, “From what we saw at the audit today, there seems to be a lot of branded plastic waste.”
“We categorise the waste and brand them accordingly,” he added. Once the branded waste is categorised, it is again divided according to individual brands.“It is essential to understand what kind of manufacturer is behind the generation of this plastic — whether local or international. If they have an international presence, we need to know what their policy is as far as other countries are concerned,” said Kripa.
According to Kripa, it is high time that businesses were asked if they were ready to be a part of the solution rather than only placing the onus on consumers.
According to the new Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM), 2016, brand owners who sell or market their products in non-biodegradable packaging material, must have a system in place to ‘collect back’ the packaging waste generated. “Why would consumers choose to dispose certain materials and retain some others? Who manufactures the materials that are designed to be disposed of after a single use?,” she asked.