How to generate less plastic waste and technological waste

Plastics contribute to the quality of life of people who help to live conveniently and safely. It’s a wide range of materials with which essential and everyday products are made, from medical supplies to cellphones, with a big role in industries such as technology and innovation, electronics, medicine, construction, transportation, packaging, agriculture, sports and articles household.

But plastics have the other side of generating millions of tons of waste. Only Argentina currently produces 1.1 kilograms of urban solid waste per person per day, which represents 14 million tonnes per year, 43% of which ends up in open landfills.. Faced with this general problem, it is essential that society understands that, in the case of plastics, it is not waste, but a precious resource, so it is essential that it is consumed, reused, recycled and recovered in a responsible manner.

Currently, the challenge for the country and the world is to become better aware of its use and potential, consolidate a positive, efficient and sustainable contribution to the environment, following the circular economy model.

“It is very important to create a long-term sustainable culture reinforced by education and increasingly conscious and responsible consumption that brings together users, companies, the articulation of public policies, the educational community and organizations. third sector, so that we work together with the objective of finding opportunities for this great challenge of paradigm shift ”, he explained to Infobae Verónica Ramos, Executive Director of Ecoplas, a non-profit civil association specializing in plastics and the environment which promotes the sustainable development of the plastics industry.

With this premise, and understanding the key role plastics play in today’s life, Ecoplas recently presented its manual “Plastics in the circular economy“, a key tool for promoting the responsible consumption of plastics, as well as for promoting the sustainability and value of their reuse and recycling.

The, sand urges to use plastics for as long as possible, to extract more value from them, as well as to recover and reuse them in new products, also generating new jobs. For this, the civil association underlines the importance of the 4Rs (reduce, recycle, reuse and enhance energy), as well as the contribution of educated and responsible consumers, specific infrastructures and the creation of a recycling market. As a result, the environment is protected, waste is reduced, competitiveness is improved and also the efficiency of available resources.

In our country more than 251,000 tonnes of plastic are recycled and recovered per year, but there is still a long way to go to achieve global change. Currently, only six out of 10 Argentines recycle and, among those who do not, eight in ten would like to separate and / or recycle their garbage but do not have enough information, education and / or infrastructure to do so.

To achieve this, the manual highlights the importance of a law on household packaging which promotes recycling, as well as its reuse, recovery and greater importance given to the circular economy. In addition, it emphasizes the need for citizen education plan aimed at the consumer and society in general, as well as a a clear communication policy for responsible consumption.

Technological waste

Another big problem when it comes to reducing the amount of waste a person generates are the waste of technological products whose sale has grown exponentially in recent decades with the help of new technologies that are emerging and being overcome every day.

Alberto Esswein, President of PC Discount, explained to Infobae the reason why electronic waste is growing rapidly, the social and environmental risks it presents and how companies can help protect the environment: “When we acquire a new device, we are so aware of exploring all of its features that we forget what to do with the used monitor or the broken tablet.“.

Technological development and constant supply to the market lead to a permanent replacement of the electrical and electronic devices that we consume in our daily life. New features, designs and models drive the purchase of the latest devices and at the same time devices that were in use are thrown away.

And he added, “This linear economy trend (produce, consume and throw away) has put maximum pressure on the Earth’s resources, exposing one of the biggest environmental problems: the generation of a large amount of waste. electronics that are not recycled through efficient and safe methods ”.

According to a report by the Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy (PACE) and the United Nations Coalition on Electronic Waste in early 2019, Around the planet, around 50 million tonnes of “electronic waste” or waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) are created each year, with a forecast of 120 million tonnes by 2050. The report also refers to the value of this waste, which exceeds $ 60 billion each year.

At the same time, the United Nations Environment Program reports that 80% of this electronic waste ends up in landfill or open dumps, without proper recycling management. WEEE contains chemicals that pollute the environment by mixing with the rest of the waste, releasing toxic metals harmful to health.

The UN is funding projects to support the electronic waste recycling industry in 13 Latin American countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. He also called for the implementation of the circular economy, which promotes greater reuse and possible recycling. In other words, do not use new resources to continue progress in a more sustainable way.

“In this new model, we find the possibility of changing the way of producing and consuming in order to have economic growth. Faced with this situation, the reuse Recycling is the indicated alternative for recovering electrical and electronic equipment in an economical, technical and ecologically efficient manner. Accordingly, the products Renovated (also called “reconditioned”) are the items that are intended for marketing after having been reviewed, repaired and reconditioned, “said the expert, who as part of World recycling day, sought to reaffirm the commitment we must have to effectively reuse and recycle disused IT assets, reduce electronic waste while recovering the value of disused equipment, help reduce the digital divide, taking care of the environment.

KEEP READING: