For most of human evolution, we have lived in complete harmony with Mother Nature. But in our mad race towards modernization, we began to exploit Mother Nature for our own benefits. Our Earth which was once considered as a Green Planet has now become a dump house of Plastic Waste. Plastic is a forever deadly pollutant as it is non-degradable. It is disturbing our ecosystem as tons and tons of plastic waste is being disposed of every day into our environment. Tons of plastic waste is being dumped into water bodies and this has proven deadly for the aquatic creatures. Plastic is composed of toxic chemicals which highly dangerous for human beings, wildlife and plants. Our addiction to single-use plastic products has already become a drastic threat to our environment.
About 1 million plastic drinking bottles are purchased every minute around the world and about 5 trillion use-and-throw plastic bags are used and thrown every year. Researchers estimate that more than 8.5 billion tons of plastics have been produced since the 1950s, of which almost 60-65 % of the plastic waste has been dumped into the landfills or water bodies. Another worrying trend is that the usage of single-use plastic has increased much faster than the use of durable plastic. An added dangerous issue is that plastic is made from oil, natural gas and coal – all of which are non-renewable sources. It has been proven that plastic secretes estrogen imitators which are considered a precursor of cancer and other health-related issues.
It’s critical that we put an end to this plastic consumption. We should think of alternative ways to reduce plastic consumption. What if we could replace plastic products with an eco-friendly material? Bamboo is one such alternative.
Bamboo
Bamboos are a group of woody perennial evergreen plants which belong to grass family Poaceae. It is naturally organic and can be grown without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
Bamboo products are the best replacement for plastic products as they are diverse, versatile, fast-growing and renewable. Bamboo is an eco-friendly alternative for many plastic products. Few more features about this humble grass which add to its credibility are:
- Growing Bamboo is one of the less resource intensive operations
- It holds the soil thus inhibiting soil erosion.
- Bamboo produces more of oxygen as compared to other trees.
- Minimizes CO2 in the air (appropriates up to 11-12 tons of CO2 from the air per hectare)
- Its production is cost effective.
- Helps alleviate water pollution due to its high nitrogen consumption.
- It grows at the rate of 1.6 inches in 1 hour. Within 4-5 years bamboo reaches its maturity and can be harvested.
Uses of Bamboo
Bamboo is being extensively used in making many household products because of its durability and versatility. There is no other plant that can compete with Bamboo in terms of such utility. There is a diverse range of Bamboo products already being made in sustainable ways.
Uses of Bamboo in various stages of growth:
- Less than 40 days – Good for eating.
- 50 days- 3 months- Bamboo fibres in Fabrics and Beddings.
- 4-9 months – For basket making.
- 1-2 years- Home Décor, Kitchen Utensils.
- 2-3 years- For making bamboo boards, lamination work and handicraft work.
- 3-6 years – In construction work.
- Greater than 6 years- Furniture and construction
Bamboo is known as ‘Green Gold’ because of its endless benefits and uses to mankind.
A Replacement of Plastic
Bamboo can virtually replace all the Plastic products. It is increasingly being used in home décor and construction industry because of its strength and durability. People have slowly but steadily started exploring the benefits of this “Green Gold”.
Some Bamboo products as a replacement of Plastic products are:
1. Bamboo ToothBrush
Bamboo ToothBrush is 100% natural and organic. It is more eco-friendly and does not disturb the ecosystem. It has got a more comfortable grip.
2. Musical Instruments
Musical Instruments like flute, slit drums are made of bamboo. It hollow nature makes it suitable to be used in many musical instruments. Though, a bit expensive, bamboo is also being used in guitars and ukuleles.
3. Food Packing
Recently, Bamboo with cassava has been getting used for packaging food products. Due to its resistance to water and temperature bamboo is being widely used in the food packaging industry.
4. Kitchen Utensils
Bamboo is resistant to heat, hence ideal for kitchen utensils like spoons, spatula, mug and jug etc.
5. Fabric Material
Bamboo fibres are used in fabrics which makes it more soft and comfortable than cotton. Bamboo is extensively used in doormats, bamboo curtains.
6. Home Décor
A large part of the furniture in your house can be replaced with bamboo furniture. Bamboo chairs, sofa set, dining table set etc. Bamboo has a lot of use in home décor from using as a flower vase to photo frame.
7. Beauty Products
Bamboo is being used in beauty products ranging from makeup blenders to bamboo powder which is rich in minerals and silica, which helps to soften and give a healthy glow. Bamboo is fast replacing the plastic bodies of lipstick, lip glosses etc. too.
8. Bicycle
Bamboo bicycles are also 100% natural and eco-friendly. The plastic body of the bicycle has been replaced by bamboo. Bamboo bicycles though not very common, it is slowly gaining momentum.
Recent Initiatives in the News
1. Students of NID have used bamboo creatively for replacing plastic. These students have innovatively used bamboo in several kitchen and office accessories, thus replacing bamboo with plastic.
2. Agricultural entrepreneur Yogesh Shinde from Pune has started a new venture to reduce the use of plastic products by making eco-friendly bamboo products.
3. Abhishek and Aadesh Agarwal, 2 young entrepreneurs started an innovative project in 2011 which makes disposable cutlery made from plants, not from plastics. Such initiatives will help to reduce plastic consumption.
Conclusion
Bamboo products are gaining adoption with those who want to bring a change towards ecofriendliness. In order to reduce plastic pollution in our country, many startups are coming up with different alternatives for plastic. Let’s have a look at a few of these:
1. Bamboo India: It is a venture that manufactures and promotes bamboo products. They are engaged in making a variety of Bamboo household products.
2. Pappco: This venture makes disposable cutlery by using parts of sugarcane and bamboo.
3. Bakey’s: Bakey’s Food Private Limited which was established in 2010 in Hyderabad. This company makes edible spoons and cutlery made of bamboo and wood instead of plastic.
Many National and International bodies like UN are relentlessly working towards improving the living condition of people around the world by working towards providing knowledge about better plastic waste management, plastic recycling and sustainable development. The governments are also providing support in this field. Many motivated young minds and startups have come up with alternatives to plastic. It’s the responsibility of each and every individual to be a conscious consumer and make this earth a better place to live. If we want our future generation to live in a healthy and clean environment then we must learn to conserve and preserve our nature and bamboo is going to play an important role in it.
Go Green, coz Plastic is Obscene.
Also read:
Everyday Products that Contain Avoidable Plastics
Top 15 Products to Replace Plastic in Everyday Life
