Non-biodegradable plastic is posing a grave threat to the
environment
Here are some plastic facts :
·
Production [ Worldwide ]
# 1950…………………. 2 Million tons
# 2017……………….. 8.3 Billion tons
# 2050 ( Est )……… 34 Billion
tons
·
Plastic Waste Estimates
# 2020………………. 30
Million tons
# 2025………………. 70 Million tons
[ 25 % of this will be marine debris
]
·
50 % of the plastic we
use is thrown away after SINGLE
USE
·
Enough plastic is thrown away
each year to circle the earth FOUR TIMES
·
We only recover 5
% of the plastic we produce
·
More than ONE MILLION plastic bags
are used EVERY MINUTE
·
Approximately 500
BILLION plastic bags are used worldwide annually
·
Plastic accounts for around 10 % of the total waste we generate
·
The production of plastic uses around 8 % of the world’s oil production
·
Plastic in the ocean breaks
down into small segments ; pieces from a ONE LITRE bottle could end up on EVERY MILE of beach THROUGHOUT the WORLD
·
Over the past decade, we have produced more plastic than during the
whole of last century
In the
recent past , there is a growing awareness of the hazard posed by the plastic
to the environment and ( among many ) , Maharashtra Government is trying to come up with
rules / regulations concerning production / sale / storage / use of plastic
bags / bottles / packages etc
There have also been sporadic attempts for recycling of plastic waste , including
using it for constructing roads
/ highways ( claimed to be of excellent strength ! )
Some entrepreneurs have even constructed small houses using discarded plastic bottles
Times of India ( 07 Nov 2017 ) carried
following news :
·
Around 450 quake-resistant ‘dome houses’, each made of a dozen polystyrene foam pieces glued together, put up by a health resort in Japan
are drawing visitors from across Asia.
The domes withstood last year’s deadly earthquakes in Kumamoto
prefecture, where the Aso resort is located, said manager Masaya Konishi.
Japan Dome House, the company that makes the polystyrene pieces
used in the structures, says that after the 2016 earthquakes, sales spiked two
to three-fold
Houses
constructed with either foam or with empty / discarded plastic bottles , are
not only light weight but also sound-proof and heat-proof ( air acting as insulation )
That made me ask :
Can we turn this “ threat “ into an “ opportunity “ ?
Here is how :
·
By all means , discourage manufacture / use of ROUND shaped plastic
bottles
·
Encourage ( Start-Ups : take
note ) , manufacture of SQUARE
shaped bottles , having square
and flat TOPS ( lids ) and BOTTOMS
·
Standardize the SQUARENESS
of these bottles ( of different widths ) in such a way that :
# These are STACKABLE ( one on top of
another )
# The smaller ones can slide inside the bigger ones ( like plastic garden
chairs )
# Flat sides carry vertical grooves for “
nesting “ one bottle over another ( like
lego )
# Just like screw-able “ lid “ , consider screw-able “ bottom “ as
well . This will
enable
removing those “ lids “ and “ bottoms “ and screw-up the central part of the
bottle onto another bottle , to create a “ Column “ or a “ Beam “ of a house
I have a feeling that this innovation will , not only solve the
problem of discarded plastic bottles but , at the same time , provide cheap / durable / small (
single story ) houses for millions
of our poor homeless , who will be happy to pick up the discarded
bottles from everywhere and build those simple houses ( roof and walls ) on a DIY basis
I urge Shri Ratan Tata to take up this “ Innovation Research “ ,
considering his interest in this subject , as evident from my following blog
Monday, 16 January 2012
A People’s Home ?
If India’s TATA
group can deliver a People’s
Car for Rs 100,000 ( Euro 1700 ), then why not a People’s Home for Rs. 32,000 ( Euro 500 ) ?
That is the question
that Sumitesh Das –
Chief of Tata Steel’s global research program – must have asked his colleagues.
As per DNA Money ( 16 July, 2011 ), the answer was, “ Yes of course ! Why not ? “
So, they came up with following specifications for People’s Home :
Ø
Flat roof with an area of 20 square meter for Rs.32,000
Ø
Upgraded 30 Sq
Meter model to cost Rs
44,000 ( Euro 700 )
Ø
Pre-fabricated
kit containing all parts
Ø
Kit to have significant amount of “ non-steel “ components
Ø
Kits to be manufactured ( under
license ), all over India, in order to generate local employment
Ø
People’s Home must last about 20 years
Ø
Buyer should be able to
assemble himself within 7 days
For India, with a
current shortfall of 25.7
million dwellings, this is nothing short of a technological breakthrough
!
Deliveries are expected to start within next few months.
Congratulations, Sumitesh
!
