The rapid development of the plastics industry has also brought about a series of social problems caused by waste plastics and waste plastics that people do not want to see. The application of plastic products has been deeply rooted in every corner of the society. From industrial production to food, clothing and housing, plastic products are everywhere. People began to discover that plastic waste has come to us quietly, seriously affecting our physical health and living environment. For example, some agricultural lands have started to reduce production due to the effects of abandoned plastic film, and “white pollution†caused by waste plastics has started to cause headaches for people. The non-decomposable and undecomposable lunch boxes cannot be effectively recycled. The use of plastic waste cannot be dealt with.... The dramatic increase in plastic waste and the resulting social and environmental problems have been placed in front of people and placed in the lives of people around the world. The place.
According to statistics, the annual domestic production of municipal solid waste in China has reached more than 120 million tons, of which waste plastics account for 2% to 4%, which means that the total amount of waste plastics produced each year is about 2.4 million to 4.8 million tons. The increasing number of these plastic wastes that cannot be naturally absorbed will not only seriously affect and pollute the environment, but will even endanger the survival of human beings. Due to the lack of modern landfill or incineration facilities in many of China's large and medium-sized cities, most of the waste plastics can only be stored in the open air. In addition, people are arbitrarily discarded and the city is surrounded by “white wasteâ€.
Environmental and social issues caused by waste plastics
Every year in the world, a large number of waste plastics are cumulatively accumulated, which brings tremendous environmental pressure to the society. According to reports, plastics account for less than 10% (by weight) of plastics in waste, but because they are not easily decomposed and large and irregular, they are difficult to handle, resulting in land expulsion and environmental pollution, but also for the development of plastic products. There is a layer of shadow; in addition, many plastic products are used only once to be disposed of, which also causes waste of resources. China produces 600 million tons of industrial solid waste and more than 10,000 tons of municipal solid waste every year. The average annual comprehensive utilization or disposal is only about 40%. Most of them are simply stacked in open air. As of the beginning of 1996, the cumulative stockpile of industrial solid waste in China reached 6 billion tons, covering an area of ​​500km2. Because people’s environmental awareness is weak and good hygiene habits are not formed, even though China’s per capita plastic consumption level (5ke/3.) is lower than the world’s average consumption level (17.5kg/3,), it is thrown away by plastic waste. The pollution caused by the environment is already startling. The slopes along the railway line are filled with a large number of fast food boxes, food bags and beverage bottles, along with the trains; all kinds of abandoned plastic bags and broken films on the branches of living areas and suburban highways flutter in the wind; Beautiful resorts, large areas of plastic waste abound, and more.... Plastic waste not only makes the environment dirty and ugly, but because it cannot effectively return to nature, it also affects a large number of farmland.
In recent years, China’s economic losses caused by environmental pollution and ecological damage have reached as much as 200 billion yuan each year, of which ecological damage has been 100 billion yuan, production of contaminated grain has reduced production by 12.8 million tons, and grain is seriously polluted with 30 million tons of grain. According to the World Bank, in 1995, China caused 800,000 premature deaths due to pollution, 7.4 million people suffered from bronchitis, and the country spent 34 billion yuan on medical expenses. It is estimated that it will cost 104 billion yuan by 2020. In the five-year plan from 1990 to 1995, China’s environmental protection investment accounted for 0.7% of the GNP. From 1996 to 2000, the environmental protection investment increased to 450 billion yuan, accounting for about 1.2% of the GNP, which was already high. Funds invested in research and development in the country (0.7% to 0.8% of GNP). Some developed countries have relatively small economic pressure, and their environmental protection investment is as high as 7%. They believe that ecological compensation should be given to the environment that was destroyed in the past. The proportion of non-pollution treatment of urban garbage in China is still less than 5%, and the total amount of packaging waste is 15 million tons per year, of which the pollution of film products is quite serious. The main source of these films is the packaging film, followed by the agricultural mulch. Plastic products, including various plastic films, have not been effectively recycled due to aging and crushing during use, which not only caused huge waste of resources, but also caused serious ecological damage to soil, rivers, lakes, and seas, greatly restricting Social and economic sustainable development.
Waste plastics harm to agriculture and biology
Harm to soil and crops
According to the current situation of the waste plastics in the world and in China, the waste plastics that mainly affect the social environment are agricultural and packaging materials. Agricultural waste plastics are mainly abandoned plastic film, including plastic film, shed film, fruit and vegetable cling film and agricultural irrigation impermeable membrane. Covering the agricultural film can increase the temperature, keep warm, keep fertilizer, and retain water, and control the growth of weeds and the return of alkali to the saline-alkaline soil. The yield increase benefit is significant. Therefore, in recent years, the output of the agricultural film in China has generally risen. However, the service life of agricultural film is generally short. The service life of existing film in China is usually 1 to 2 years. After the used agricultural film is put into the environment, it becomes an important part of plastic waste. Taking waste plastic materials for example, the molecular weight of these materials is between 104 and 105, and the binding between molecules is quite strong. Under natural conditions, the decomposition rate is extremely slow. For example, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride plastic films can be completely degraded in the soil for about 300 to 400 years. They stay in the soil and destroy the permeability of the soil, reduce the water storage capacity of the soil, and affect the crops' moisture and nutrients. The absorption has hindered the growth of the root system of the seedlings, resulting in a significant reduction in crop production and degraded cultivated land. In addition, heavy metal ions and toxic substances in plastic additives will diffuse through the soil and penetrate, directly affecting groundwater quality and plant growth. According to reports, if there are 3.9kg of residual film per acre (667m2) of land, it will reduce corn production by 11% to 13%, potato 5, 5% to 9.0%, and vegetables by 14.6% to 59.2%; others In the experiment, when 6.9 kg of agricultural film residue per mu was used, the wheat yield was reduced by about 9%, and when it reached 25 kg, the production was reduced by 26%. At present, some agricultural departments promote the 0.007mm ultra-thin film that cannot be recycled, which is not appropriate in the long run.
Harm to animals
The damage caused by plastic waste to marine organisms is 4 times the hazard of oil spillage. The annual number of abandoned fishing tackles that are discarded in the ocean is more than 150,000 tons, and various plastic waste products are in the range of several million tons or more. The damage caused to animals by waste plastics is mainly manifested in eating animals by mistake, scratching the esophagus, causing stomach ulcers and other diseases. Toxic plastic additives, such as the antioxidant tributyltin, cause the animal to reduce appetite, reduce steroid hormone levels due to bio-enrichment, resulting in reduced reproduction rates and even death. It is estimated that at least millions of marine animals die each year due to eating plastics. At present, at least 50 species of seabirds are known to devour plastic balls and mistake them for larvae of fish eggs or fish. Sea turtles also use some plastic products as jellyfish to eat, and sea turtles like to play in waste plastic fishing nets. dead. On land, some ruminants (such as cows, sheep and other livestock) and birds have accumulated in the gastrointestinal tract due to swallowing plastic film fragments on the grass. This has caused numerous cases of intestinal obstruction and even death, such as death from a death in Beijing. The plastic film that clears the cow's stomach is 13kg.
Harm to human body
Fire accidents caused by plastic waste occur from time to time. The incineration of plastic waste also produces harmful gases, such as the combustion of PVC to produce hydrogen chloride (HCl), the combustion of ABS and acrylonitrile to produce hydrogen cyanide (HCN), the combustion of polyurethane also produces cyanide, and the combustion of polycarbonate generates phosgene And other harmful gases. Dioxins and other toxic gases produced by the combustion of the chlorides can cause mammals and birds to become deformed and die, causing great damage to the ecology. Their damage to the human body is also extremely serious, manifested as liver dysfunction and nerve damage, and increase the incidence of cancer. Some injuries are potential. For example, Danish researchers first discovered in 1992 that the number of modern human sperm cells has fallen by more than 50% in the past 50 years. In the 1940s, the average sperm volume of men was 60 million/mL, but now only 2000. Million/mi. , A reduction of 2/3, • The general deterioration of male sexual function, the prevalence of testicular cancer has more than doubled in the past 40 years. The reason why this phenomenon is caused is that the reduction in spermatozoa caused by the exhaustion of Dioxin is one of the reasons. In addition, some of the dioxide dioxide produced by the combustion of plastics also has the function of “replicating†estrogens, which doubles the estrogens in men. The increase of estrogens means a certain degree of feminization, which makes men’s energy in explosiveness. The advantages of stamina and stamina tend to weaken.