‘It’s not the same ! ’ , cried a very agitated Sophie, on the billing counter at the local supermarket. ‘Ma’am , it’s fine quality plastic, I assure you. It IS eco-friendly’, assured the woman across the counter. ‘If it’s not above 20 microns thick, the plastic is NOT eco-friendly ! ,’ asserted Sophie. This […]
‘It’s not the same ! ’ , cried a very agitated Sophie, on the billing counter at the local supermarket.
‘Ma’am , it’s fine quality plastic, I assure you. It IS eco-friendly’, assured the woman across the counter.
‘If it’s not above 20 microns thick, the plastic is NOT eco-friendly ! ,’ asserted Sophie.
This continued for some time, before, the shopped items were shoved into the plastic carry bag by the woman and 12-year-old Sophie was shoved into the car by her mother.
Sophie was really annoyed by now.
‘If I don’t segregate waste as biodegradable and non-biodegradable, what difference does it make ? It’s all going in the landfill anyway.’
This mindset is dangerous and ignorant. Above all, it is obstinate. People simply refuse to assimilate that every teeny tiny bit counts. That they ARE the difference. If everyone gets that, simple mathematical integration: A big, visible result can be seen. However, actually changing the mindset is rather difficult to begin with.
It is more convenient to eat an ice candy and flick it out of your car window, leaving it to clog drains, getting swept into the sea and being eaten by a turtle; which ultimately dies. And boy, do people love convenience. Most people don’t care for what happens to the future. If it’s easier now, the future problems can be solved in the future.
If you wrap your food in aluminium foil , you are unnecessarily wasting the non-renewable mineral resource.
If you wrap your food in clear wrap, you are using non-biodegradable plastic, which will one day form a mountain of its own and refuse to go away from the face of the planet.
If you wrap your food in paper, are you not harming the trees ?
This is a small example. Every small thing matters. But the trouble is, how do you go green by not harming any Nature’s resources ?
While being green , it’s a little unsettling to decide.
Most people, organizations and industries would prefer to burn the easily available and cheaply bought fossil fuels than install solar panels which are highly expensive at the moment. When it comes to money, ‘going green’ transforms from ‘green-the colour of Nature’ to ‘green-the colour of money’.
There is a growing creed of people going the greener way. They are the few who actually take the effort, cross the hurdles and care for Mother Nature. ‘Go Green’ ideas are easy. Simple. Fifth graders write answers in tests on such questions. Everyone KNOWS them. Few IMPLEMENT them. Some out of laziness, some out of habit and some out of actual practical problems.
Whatever be the case, being green is not easy.
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