Participants at the launching ceremony (Source: VNA) Binh Dinh (VNA) - An action month on environmental protection was launched in the south central province of Binh Dinh on June 4, themed “Resolving pollution caused by plastic and nylon”.
The event was part of activities to mark World Environment Day on June 5.
Speaking at the launching ceremony, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Vo Tuan Nhan said the event aims to encourage people to change their daily habits to minimise the impacts of plastic and nylon waste on the environment and health.
Statistics show that each household in Vietnam uses about 1kg of nylon bags a month.
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City each discharge about 80 tonnes of plastic waste and nylon bags into the environment each day.
Plastic bags are very difficult to decompose, polluting the soil and water environment and hindering the growth and development of plant species.
Burning plastic bags creates emissions of dioxin and furan, which harm human health, Nhan noted.
Nhan affirmed the determination to raise public awareness of the importance of preventing the pollution of plastic and nylon bags.
He called on ministries, political and social organisations and citizens to work to change the bad habit, thus protecting the environment.
Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Ho Quoc Dung affirmed the locality will promote action programmes to protect the environment.
The Canadian Embassy in Vietnam said about 300 million tonnes of plastics is produced globally each year, half of which is used to create single-use products like bags, bottles and straws. One million plastic bags are used every minute.
According to earthday.org, 8.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic has been produced since plastic was introduced in the 1950s. The amount of plastic produced in a year is roughly the same as the entire weight of humanity. 91 percent of plastics waste isn’t recycled. And since most plastics don’t biodegrade well, all that plastic waste could exist for hundreds or even thousands of years.
Some 8 million metric tonnes of plastic winds up in the oceans each year. That’s enough trash to cover every foot of coast around the world with five full trash bags of plastic compounding every year.
A recent international survey revealed that Vietnam is one of the five countries in the world discharging the most plastic waste, with about 1.8 million tonnes dumped each year. -VNA
VNA
