Stopping the production and use of polythene is the need of the hour to save the environment.

A little bit of our awareness when using polyethylene can save millions of lives, including our environment. As polythene is harmful to the environment, polythene bags’ production, use, marketing, and transportation were banned in Bangladesh under the “Environmental Conservation Act-1995” in 2002.

Article no.25 of the law states that “If a person produces prohibited polythene, he can get sentenced to 10 years imprisonment or a fine of TK 1 million lakh, or even both.”

There is also a provision of a fine of BDT 10,000, including six months jail for marketing polythene. However, even though polythene is getting used openly in the markets, this law has no application.

Polythene is an essential material at present. It is getting used almost everywhere. Collecting food in polythene and consuming it is causing deadly diseases like cancer in the human body.

At present, polythene is seen in all types of hotels and restaurants, big and small. According to experts, “When one keeps hot food in polythene, a chemical substance named bisphelon got created. Bisophelon inhibits thyroid hormone, can lead to liver and kidney failure.”

If Bislene gets absorbed by a pregnant woman, it can cause harm or death to the fetus and infertility in the mother. Newborns can also get disabled. Even if one takes food left in the fridge in a polythene bag, there is equal damage.

We see abandoned parts of polythene lying there. Polythene is also getting used to dumping waste. It is trapped in the soil and impedes the movement of water and natural nutrients.

Soil microorganisms do not grow normally, soil fertility decreases, and crop yields decrease. Polythene thrown in the dustbin enters the drain with rainwater, which causes waterlogging in light rains.

Burning polythene pollutes the air by producing carbon monoxide. Polythene is destroying marine biodiversity. Polythene got made again by burning old polythene, which is highly harmful to the environment.

According to one statistic, a family in Dhaka uses an average of four polythene bags per day. More than 14 million polythene bags are getting used and discarded once a day in Dhaka city alone.

Bangladesh Paribesh Bachao Andolan (BAPA) claimed that around 20 million polythene bags are deposited daily in Dhaka. According to a report, several hundred plastic factories in the Lalbagh, Kamrangirchar area of ​​the capital.

In the Chandirghat area of ​​Lalbagh, the factory of plastic products gets observed. The production and sale of illegal polythene are openly get done here.

Jute products must be used as an alternative to polythene or plastic bags in Bangladesh. The use of jute bags in the storage and transportation of 18 products has been made compulsory.

However, because polythene is cheap and readily available, its use is more. We need to think of alternatives that do not harm the environment. Compostable polythene is the subsequent invention of plastic, which got made from renewable materials. It breaks down in 90 days and mixes with the soil, so there is no environmental damage.

At present biodegradable polythene is getting manufactured in other countries of the world besides India and China. Hundreds of countries, including Africa, Uganda, Europe, Australia, Germany, and North America, have banned chemical polythene and produced biodegradable polythene.

Polythene bags made from corn have been getting manufactured at” Expo Accessories” in Kamarpara, Gazipur, Bangladesh, since 2019, which is undoubtedly a good initiative. However, we need a national initiative for the production of such biodegradable polythene.

The use of jute bags has increased in our neighbouring country India due to conscious and strict guidelines to the people. However, due to our country’s lack of law enforcement, polythene production is still going on.

The existing laws prohibiting the production and use of banned polythene bags should get strictly enforced, and those who violate the law should bring under exemplary punishment. As an alternative to polythene, jute bags, cloth bags, paper bags, or thongs should make available, and awareness should raise.

The government should be strict so that banned polythene does not get produced in the country in any way. Campaigns, miking, posters, leaflets should distribute across the country to stop the use of polythene. Our existence will get endangered if we face environmental damage, so it is essential to stop producing and using banned polythene.