Research: Quitting Plastic Is A Good Step But Not Enough, It Needs More Radical Steps

JAKARTA - A group of researchers from the University of Nottingham, England revealed that the trend of people who are more concerned about the environmental impact of plastic waste is unproductive. This was revealed by researchers seeing the tendency of those who care about plastic problems often close their eyes to bigger environmental problems.

Launching Euronews.com, Wednesday, October 28, researchers argue that people have a tendency to care because of emotional images after seeing animals trapped in plastic waste. Then, it moved people to reject single-use plastics. Action is good, but not helpful enough.

A move like rejecting plastics is described by researchers as leading to complacency. As a result, other more serious environmental problems such as illegal logging, exploitation of natural resources, or demanding an overhaul of the waste management system have been missed.

Moreover, caring about the problem of plastic waste only encourages small changes to the environment, nothing more. The changes expected only focus on the emergence of a single-use plastic ban, or financial incentives for using reusable bags and containers. As a result, other environmental problems are ignored.

“We are seeing unprecedented engagement with environmental issues, especially plastic pollution from the public. And we believe this presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to promote another environmental problem with even greater potential, ”said co-author Tom Stanton.

“This is an important moment to highlight and address areas such as the 'throwing' culture in the community and overhauling waste management. However, if we continue to prioritize plastics, this opportunity will be missed and will be detrimental to our environment, "he concluded.

Our desire to avoid plastic products can in turn lead us to use alternative materials, such as glass, aluminum and paper. However, these possible substitutes have a more potentially dangerous effect.

Moreover, the tendency of people who deify plastic alternatives often forgets the real problem. Especially, the problem of the impact of wastes resulting from daily activities. For example, textile waste, yarn, and the use of fuel.

Because of that, this study recommends an action in the future so that the general public is more educated about environmental issues. In this sense, the actions to be carried out in the future are more structured and well-informed.

Even so, plastic pollution remains a big problem. However, there is an environmental problem that is more urgent than simply refusing to use single-use plastic. Researchers actually invite the public to be a little more radical in entering the realm of government, demanding that the authorities in various countries make developments related to waste management to make it better.