Every day we get to hear about how the environment is getting polluted. Experts have estimated that annual waste generation in India will go up to 165 million tonnes b 2030. If we go at this pace, around 66,000 hectares of land will be needed to set up a landfill site that can hold up to 20 years’ waste. This clearly shows that if we do not change our waste practices now then we will soon be buried in our own muck.
We often celebrate inventions but surely cannot say the same about 'plastic'. Every product has a shelf life, but it is not the case with plastics. It takes around 500 to 1000 years to completely degrade. At present, India generates around 56 lakh tonnes of plastic waste annually and Delhi alone generates around 9,600 metric tonnes per day.
Well, to solve this Herculean task of managing waste and plastic menace, 31-year-old Abhimanyu Chakravorty, from Delhi, will be travelling to five countries to create awareness about the hazard of single-use disposable plastic on the environment and the human food chain.
Chakravorty, while speaking to Indiatimes, said that he got inspired after seeing a post on his Facebook wall. The picture of a 10-feet-long sperm whale that washed up dead on a beach in Spain with 29 kg of plastic waste inside its belly made him realise that it needs to stop.
What will the Journey look like?
Chakravorty, a New Delhi-based media professional became a plastic-shunning, climate-change campaigner recently. This happened when he read about three ordinary women, with no prior rowing experience, who would row 3000-miles across the Atlantic in December 2018 to challenge the everyday use of plastic.
Powered by their belief that ordinary people can do extraordinary stuff, "I will undertake a solo motorcycle trip in September across Southeast Asia crossing Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Nepal over three months to raise awareness and take action against plastic pollution. Since India is the host of this year’s World Environment Day with the theme 'Beat Plastic Pollution,' the trip’s primary purpose is to fundamentally change human attitude and behaviour towards plastic, he said
But why Southeast Asia?
Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia, Philippines and China account for nearly 60 per cent of plastic trash in our oceans. India too has a big trash problem, and discards tonnes of waste into oceans. Through his trip, he plans to document plastic consumption in these countries and their waste management processes.
He will also participate in beach-cleaning and plogging (picking up trash while running) initiatives, conduct workshops with NGOs to share knowledge about India’s waste management system, and also learn from them their solutions to the plastic pollution problem.
How did it all start?
Earlier this year, a picture of a 10-feet-long sperm whale that washed up dead on a beach in Spain with 29 kg of plastic waste inside its belly popped up on my Facebook feed. And it completely changed Chakravorty's perception of plastic. He wanted to take action but didn’t know how and where to start from. Then he read about Mumbai lawyer Afroz Shah’s massive clean-up drive at Versova beach and he was floored by the scale of the initiative. His call to action against marine litter left a deep impression on him. And as he was firming up plans to start a small cleanup in one south Delhi public parks, he came across a Swedish fitness craze on the Internet called ‘Plogging’, already a rage in Sweden, US and Germany. It’s a mashup of two words ‘Plocka upp’ (pick up) and ‘Jogga’ (jogging), which means picking up trash while jogging. This idea was the easiest to translate into action and it became his way of saying no to single-use disposable plastic.
"I love running and spending time in nature so this idea fits perfectly into my scheme of things. And if this meant carrying a trash bag and gloves with me to a park, it was easy. While I have always been very environmentally conscious, plogging was just a nudge for me to take affirmative action for our country’s trash problem. Picking up trash is the first step to any waste management drive. Through plogging, at least, the waste is being taken out of nature," he said.
What gives him the motivation?
"If you don’t believe in your goals, nobody else will. I have always been self-motivated, but sometimes you need more people to get things off the ground. When I started plogging in March from Jahapanah Park in Alaknanda, I had only one friend to fall back on. We would diligently clean up the park, track our runs through a fitness app and post the trash haul on social media with #Plogging. People were interested to find out the story behind the rather odd hashtag. So we already sparked curiosity and our friends started asking us what it meant! Over time, we took before and after pictures of the spaces we cleaned up and this was motivation enough for us to carry on. When people saw our work on social media, many came forward to help. Soon we were holding discussions after our plogging sessions on ways to reduce, reuse and recycle plastic waste," he said.
"I figured that without an educational-follow up the action, volunteers would feel helpless. The conversation about reducing our reliance on plastic needed to happen. In the process, we were also creating future leaders and plastic-free campaigners who knew exactly what they are dealing with and the way ahead. So the focus was on building a team of enthusiastic people who would come up with sustainable alternatives to plastic. Now picking up trash has become a habit and it has become a part of my exercise routine," he added.
How are the funds for travelling managed?
When Chakravorty decided to undertake the Southeast Asia trip in February this year, he knew it would cost a few lakhs to cross international borders on a vehicle given bike permits, multiple visas, fuel, accommodation expenses. But his savings weren’t enough to fund the trip. So a friend suggested a crowd fundraiser or reach out to brands who feel for the cause. Crowdfunding seemed like a plausible idea.
"So after two weeks of fine-tuning my statement of purpose, I went LIVE with the fundraiser in April. I am also reaching out to specific brands and individual sponsors because I might not be able to reach my target funds through online fundraiser alone. As of now, there aren’t any partners or sponsors on board but I am hoping potential donors see the honesty in the work I have done in the past three months and see some sense in that. It’s also easier to raise money when you’re madly passionate about it and there’s a cause behind your travel," he said.
As for challenges, firstly the risk involved in going solo is tremendous and it’s scaring me to bits, but there’s a sense of nervous excitement and a larger goal that’s keeping him motivated. "I wish to be the bridge of information between India and Southeast Asian countries with regards to plastic. I have never dreamt this big and I believe that if your ambitions don’t scare you, then they’re are not big enough! Secondly, a lot depends on how much money I am able to raise. So right now I am on a war-footing to get more funds. Lastly, documenting the entire project is a task because I am on my own so I have to plan everything from managing photos/videos, partnerships, logistics, costs, accommodation, insurance etc," he added.
How do people react when it comes to plastic use?
In the past three months, we have only limited ourselves to cleaning up two public parks of trash in south Delhi. Only recently a cleanup initiative was started in my colony in Chittaranjan Park. But when we were cleaning parts of Jahapanah Park in Alaknanda adjoining some underprivileged localities like Dakshinpuri, "I remember two women who watched us keenly, also a little surprised at the fact that we ran with gloves on and carried trash bags! Their reaction was a mix of wonder and amazement when they saw us picking garbage. One of them said: “Beta, aap kachra lekar bhaag rahe ho? Acha hai beta, swachta abhiyan.”
How can we reduce use of plastic?
Our oceans have become a garbage soup killing marine life, thanks to million tonnes of plastic dumped into them every year. Surprising as it may seem, but a major chunk of marine litter actually originates on land, carried to rivers and streams from our streets due to rain or sewer overflow. And there’s a simple way to stop this: say no to single-use disposable plastics, the ones we use and throw.
Much like climate change, plastic pollution might be a complex issue to address, but your solutions need not be complicated. Start simple: Carry a reusable water bottle, use a cloth bag for shopping, say no to any kind of plastic items like straws, cups, utensils, take-out containers that you use once and throw away. And this is very basic. But the biggest change can come through small tweaks in our lifestyle. Talk to friends, family about possible alternatives to plastic so that the conversation makes them think and take action!
A message for readers...
It’s high time we take action against single-use disposable plastics. Shun products that have excessive plastic packaging. And although you can make a difference with small tweaks in our lifestyle, call out to specific brands that have big plastic footprints. If you think they should be smarter about their packaging, tweet to them, mail them or better still give your money to a much more sustainable competitor.
Support organisation working to proactively tackle plastic pollution by donating to them, no matter how small your contribution. Be part of plogging activities in your vicinity, start discussions on plastic alternatives and nudge people into action. Even a small change in your everyday habits can make a world of difference. Lastly, refuse, reduce, reuse, and recycle. Be the solution, not the problem!