The strictest "plastic ban" was implemented for 4 months, how to solve these problems
Our reporter Li He
At present, the main components of personal protective products such as wet wipes and masks on the market in my country are mostly non-woven fabrics.
Most non-woven fabrics use polyester fiber as the base material, and polyester fiber is a common plastic material that cannot be degraded naturally in nature.
Li Hongliang, representative of the National People's Congress, member of the Party Committee of Xinhe Town, Chaisang District, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province
White pollution control faces new problems.
On March 30, at the People’s Livelihood Consultation Forum of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference with the theme of "Promoting the Comprehensive Treatment of Plastic Pollution", experts pointed out that the current plastic pollution control is facing the lack of uniform standards for the production of degradable plastic products or other alternative products, and the supply of alternative products. There are short-term problems such as gaps.
Previous investigations pointed out that paper straws that replace plastic straws have problems such as easy softening and bending and poor taste. The low strength of biodegradable plastic bags also affects the "plastic ban" effect.
During the two sessions this year, NPC deputy Li Hongliang pointed out that disposable wipes have become a new source of plastic pollution.
The latest and most stringent version of the "plastic ban" promulgated by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment has been implemented for 4 months.
How to accelerate the implementation of the "plastic ban" and reduce the environmental harm caused by white pollution?
Masks and wipes become new sources of white pollution
The "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Control of Plastic Pollution" issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment last year stated that by the end of 2020, the catering industry across the country bans the use of non-degradable disposable plastic straws, and prohibits the production and sale of disposable foamed plastic tableware; municipalities directly under the Central Government The use of non-degradable plastic bags in shopping malls, supermarkets, pharmacies, bookstores, etc., in built-up areas in cities of, provincial capitals and cities specifically designated in the plan is prohibited.
Starting from December 1, 2020, Hainan Province took the lead in the country to completely ban the sale and use of 10 types of plastic film bags, tableware and other disposable plastic products.
However, many consumers report that the degradable plastic bags are not strong enough and are easy to break; when drinking hot drinks, the paper straws are easy to soften and bend, and the taste is also poor.
Consumers also said that the paper straws “have a pulpy taste, and the small ingredients in the drink sometimes cannot be absorbed”.
The Zhejiang Provincial Consumer Rights Protection Committee once sampled paper straws provided by some milk tea beverage stores in Hangzhou, and commissioned a third-party testing agency to carry out comparative tests.
The results show that some paper straw products have problems of excessive potassium permanganate consumption and unqualified temperature resistance.
One batch of samples showed degumming and delamination under the test conditions of "water temperature of 60 degrees Celsius and water capacity of 0.5 liters".
According to the “Research Report on the New Regulations for Prohibition and Restriction of Plastics in the Yangtze River Delta” released by the Consumer Protection Committee of the Yangtze River Delta, only 32.5% of consumers will bring their own shopping bags when shopping in the supermarket, and 56% of the respondents are unwilling to use paper straws. .
Since the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia, the use of protective equipment such as wet wipes and masks has increased sharply.
At the National People’s Congress this year, Li Hongliang, a deputy to the National People’s Congress, proposed that the pollution control of disposable plastic-containing wipes, masks and other protective products in the post-epidemic era should be increased.
“Many people don’t know that most of the disposable wipes we use every day are made of plastic and cannot be degraded in nature. Disposing of these plastic-containing wipes will cause great hidden dangers to the soil and water environment.” Li Hongliang explained that the main components of personal protective products such as wet wipes and masks on the Chinese market are mostly non-woven fabrics.
Most non-woven fabrics use polyester fiber as the base material, and polyester fiber is a common plastic material that cannot be degraded naturally in nature.
According to data released by the China Tissue Paper Professional Committee, from 2012 to 2016, the consumption of wet wipes in my country increased from 15.11 billion to 39.3 billion.
According to the forecast of the forward-looking database, by 2022, the output of my country's wet wipes industry will reach 88.6 billion pieces.
Li Hongliang said that since the outer packaging of wet wipes and most masks are only labeled as "non-woven" level of raw materials, the public is not sufficiently aware of the ingredients of wet wipes and other protective products.
The survey showed that 74% of respondents were not aware of the plastic content in wet wipes.
The harm of white pollution to the environment continues to expand
The white pollution caused by plastics has become a "stubborn disease" of the environment, and the harm is still expanding.
According to research data on the construction of a "waste-free city" in Sanya City, Hainan, plastic waste accounts for the largest proportion of the types of beach waste in Sanya, and its quantity and weight accounted for 85.4% and 69.5% respectively.
The focus of prevention and control of marine garbage pollution is to prevent and control plastic garbage pollution.
Plastic waste produced on land is also the main source of marine microplastics.
Huo Chuanlin, deputy director of the Marine Ecological Environment Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said that according to the source, marine microplastics can be divided into primary microplastics and secondary microplastics.
Primary microplastics are plastic particles that are directly released into the environment in the form of small particle sizes. Secondary microplastics are large-size plastic wastes that enter the environment and are gradually broken and decomposed under the action of ultraviolet rays and waves.
According to the monitoring results in 2019, the average number of floating garbage in my country's ocean surface waters is 4,027 per square kilometer.
The average density of microplastics in the surface waters of the Bohai Sea and the East China Sea is 0.82 per cubic meter and 0.25 per cubic meter, respectively.
It is almost impossible to salvage plastic garbage on a large scale after it enters the ocean.
Huo Chuanlin emphasized that in the treatment of marine garbage and microplastics, we must reduce the amount from the source, and put forward management requirements for the production, sales and use of plastic products.
Promote the use of non-plastic products, degradable shopping bags, and degradable mulch; strengthen recycling and disposal of plastic waste, prohibit random stacking and dumping of plastic waste that cause pollution, and regulate the recycling and disposal of waste fishing nets and fishing gear.
Regarding disposable plastic-containing wet wipes and other protective products, Li Hongliang suggested that relevant national departments include them as soon as possible in the "Prohibited Production and Sale of Disposable Non-degradable Plastic Products List", encourage the production and sales of plastic-free wet wipes, and clarify that the wet wipes The packaging indicates its base composition.
"Currently, plastic-free, biodegradable natural wet wipes have come out, which are more comfortable to use, more environmentally friendly, and the cost has not increased significantly." Li Hongliang said.
Technological innovation will accelerate the pace of substitution
Facts have proved that through the implementation of "plastic ban" and the replacement of degradable plastics, the effect on the environment is very significant.
According to data from Sanya City, the above measures will enable Sanya to reduce the use of disposable non-degradable plastic bags and plastic tableware by 8,000 tons per year, and recycle 40,000 tons of waste plastic.
Chen Xin, a professor in the Department of Macromolecular Science of Fudan University, pointed out that the currently commonly used biodegradable plastic bags have relatively poor mechanical properties.
However, in the actual production process, by adjusting the ratio of raw materials and improving the production process, its strength can be improved, but correspondingly, the cost will also increase, which will further increase the retail price.
Chen Xin suggested that in addition to prohibiting manufacturers from continuing to produce non-degradable disposable plastic bags, enterprises should also be encouraged to transform to produce degradable plastic bags, and the government should give certain policy preferences and economic subsidies.
Technological innovation will also promote the improvement of the quality of degradable plastics and accelerate the pace of substitution.
Shao Changjin, representative of the National People’s Congress and chairman of Xinxiang Bailu Investment Group Co., Ltd., proposed at the National Two Meetings this year that degradable materials such as polybutylene terephthalate (PBAT) and polylactic acid (PLA) should be included in the core Tackling key technology.
The establishment of national special funds, the adoption of the system of revealing the list and speeding up the research on biodegradable materials technology and equipment, can not only reduce costs, but also accelerate the growth of new industries, develop new economies, and cultivate new kinetic energy.
Zheng Yueming, chairman of Levima Group Co., Ltd., also stated that the development of the biodegradable materials industry requires the country to strengthen industrial guidance, improve the standard system, and further increase support for the development and industrialization of key core technologies.