RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH SCIENCES KARNATAKA, BANGALORE-560041
PROFORMA FOR REGISTRATION OF SUBJECTS FOR DISSERTATION
1. / Name of the candidate and address / MR.PRALHAD V IDDALAGI1ST YEAR M.Sc. NURSING,
EAST WEST COLLEGE OF NURSING, #63, OFF MAGADI MAIN ROAD, BANGALORE-560091.
2. / Name of the institution / East West College of Nursing,
3. / Course of study and subject / 1st Year M.Sc. Nursing,
Community health nursing.
4. / Date of admission to course / 07/06/2012
5. / Title of the Study:
“ STRUCTURED TEACHING PROGRAMME ON KNOWLEDGE & ATTIDUDE REGARDING PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT ”
6. A BRIEF RESUME OF THE INTENTED WORK
6.1. INTRODUCTION
“WE DO NOT INHERIT THE EARTH FROM OUR ANCESTORS; WE BORROW IT FROM OUR CHILDREN”
–Antoine de saint exupery.
Economic growth and changing consumption and production patterns are resulting into rapid increase in generation of waste plastics in the world. The world’s annual consumption of plastic materials has increased from around 5 million tons in the 1950s to nearly 100 million tons; thus, 20 times more plastic is produced today than 50 years ago. This implies that on one hand, more resources are being used to meet the increased demand of plastic, and on the other hand, more plastic waste is being generated. In Asia and the Pacific, as well as many other developing regions, plastic consumption has increased much more than the world average economic development.7
Due to the increase in generation, waste plastics are becoming a major stream in solid waste. After food waste and paper waste, plastic waste is the third major constitute at municipal and industrial waste in cities. Even the cities with low economic growth have started producing more plastic waste due to increased use of plastic packaging, plastic shopping bags, polyethylene terephthalate (PET)bottles and other goods/appliances using plastic as the major component.7
This increase has turned into a major challenge for local authorities responsible for solid waste management and sanitation. Due to lack of integrated solid waste management, most of the plastic waste is neither collected properly nor disposed of in appropriate manner to avoid its negative impacts on environment and public health and waste plastics are causing littering and choking of sewerage system.7
The word plastic has its roots in the Greek word “Plastikos” which means being able to be moulded into different shapes. Plastic bags are moulded from basic materials that are derived from oil, coal, & natural gas. They are so cheap to produce, sturdy, plentiful, easy to carry & store.6
A simple definition could be any of group of synthetic or natural organic materials that may be shaped when soft & then hardened, including many types of resins, resinoids, polymers, cellulose derivatives, casein materials & proteins.6
Plastic (Polythene) bags which were introduced in the early 1980s have become an indispensible commodity in the modern life style. Alexander Parkes created the first man made plastic & publically demonstrated it at the 1862 great international exhibition in London. The material called parkesine was an organic material derived from cellulose that once heated, could be moulded& retained its shape when cooled.6
In chemistry, plastics are large molecules called polymers composed of repeated segments called Monomers with carbon backbone, polymers is a simply a very large molecule made up of many smaller units joined together, generally end to end, to create a long chain. The smallest building block of a polymer is called a monomer. The smallest building block of a polymer is called a monomer. Polymer are divided into 2 distinct groups 1) Thermoplastics (mouldable) 2) Thermosets (non-mouldable) 6
The plastic materials are categorised in 7 types, based on properties & applications. To make sorting & thus recycling easier. The universally accepted standards making code has been developed to help consumers identify & sort the main types of plastic. Those are polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), low density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene(PS)&others.7
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6.2. NEED FOR STUDY
Over the years plastic have brought economic, environmental & social advantages. However their popularity has also meant a rise in plastic waste which brings its own economic, environmental & social issues.12
In 2009 around 230 million tonnes of plastic waste were produced worldwide. Environmental groups estimated that every year 500 billion to one trillion plastic bags are manufactured & used worldwide & this results in a proportionate rise in plastic waste in the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) streams in large cities.11
Increasing urbanization and industrialization have contributed for increased plastic generation. This increase has been rapid since the middle of the 19th century which has affected the quality of environment. The urban population has grown at a rate of 19.9%to 34.41% during the last two decades. The growth of urban and rural population is 2.1 %and 1.5% respectively during 1991-2001. One among the reasons for urban population growth is migration of rural population to cities. Rapid population growth, urbanization and industrial growth have led to severe problem of waste generation in urban centers. India is the second fastest growing major economy in the World with GDP growth rate 9.1 % for the year 2006-07.The average municipal solid waste production is from 0.21 to 0.50 Kg per capita per day in India. The present urban population is expected 341 million in 2010. The waste quantities are expected to increase from 46 million tons in 2001 to 65 million tons in 2010. It is also reported that per capita per day production will increase to 0.7 kg in 2050.It is estimated that approximately 15722 tons per day (TPD) of plastic waste is generated on the basis of per capita consumption based on population of India.8
Besides littering problem plastic waste especially carry bags are causing an increasing number of environmental & health problems that includes choked soils, blockage of drains, animal & aquatic deaths, food hazards.8
With formal and informal sector failing to collect plastic waste, the packaging & PVC pipe industry are growing at 16-18% per year. The demands of plastic goods are increasing from house hold use to industrial applications. It is growing at an annual rate of 22%. The polymers production has reached to 8.5 million tonnes in 2007. The total plastic waste consumption in India during last decade is 61,000tonnes (1996) to 8,500,000 tonnes (2007). National Plastic Waste Management Task Force (1997) project has given the increased demands of different polymers (like Polyethylene, Polypropylene, PVC, PET, Etc) in India.8
The plastic consumption per capita per year of world is 24Kg & that of India is 6-7Kg, recycling rate of world is 15-20%, that of India is 60% & occurrence of plastic in solid waste in world is 7% & that of India is 9%. This indicates that the consumption of plastic is more in India as compared with rest of the world.7
Bengaluru city statistics shows the area of 800 sq km, population (2008): 78 lakhs, 198 wards. Estimated MSW ( municipal solid waste) generation for 2009, from all sources for BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) zones is ~ 3000tonnes per day(tpd), Per capita waste ~ 350 grams per day (gmpd) (domestic waste), households contribute to ~ 54% percent of the total waste; Markets &function halls contribute to 20% and commercial establishment &institutions contribute to 17% and others 9%. Among this solid waste the physical composition of plastic waste is 12%.16
Burning (of plastic bags) used as a plastic waste management method in some places causes local air pollution & release toxic gases such as Furan & Dioxin leave unhealthy residues that include heavy metals like lead & cadmium. Dioxins become permanent fixture in the human body & they do not dissolve in human fats. It has been linked to cancer, & it is known to affect immune system, reproduction, & hormone producing endocrine glands. Burning also emits CO2 which affects the ozone layer.6
The methods of recycling & the technology used for the same at present are quite outmoded & are in need of up gradation. It has also been observed that some of industries even recycle the plastic waste which is totally unhygienic & such is a health hazard for persons who use items made from such plastics & even used at times for packaging of food stuff & medicines.12
The researcher felt that since increase in the prevalence rate of health & environmental hazards due to the plastic waste are more. By assessing the knowledge and attitude of adolescents about the proper management of plastic wastes, the researcher can help them to improve the practices for proper disposal of plastics. All these instances instigated the researcher to conduct this study to assess the knowledge and attitude of adolescents regarding the environmental hazards due to mismanagement of plastic wastes.
6.4 REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Review of literature refers to the activities involved in identifying, searching for information on a topic and developing an understanding of the state of knowledge on that topic.
In this study review literature has been divided in the following headings:
Ø Studies and literature related to Plastic waste management (PWM)
Ø Studies and literature related to knowledge and attitude regarding Plastic waste management
Ø Studies and literature related knowledge of plastic waste management among Adolescents.
1. Studies and literature related to Plastic waste management (PWM)
An article by “ Online journal of social sciences research”, volume-I, issue-2 April-2012, has conducted the incidence of plastic waste & their effects in Alice, South Africa, under the guidance of Remigious Mangizvo. The study envisages how plastic grocery bags have critically polluted the river Tyume. The study was conducted between January 2010 –June 2011 observation on how the community dealt with plastic were made, visits were made to the various parts of the town which include the different streets, the sites where casual dumping of solid waste is done the outskirts of the town & the landfill. Interviews were conducted with residents as well as town officials to establish their views on plastics. During the time of the study plastic bags debris awash on the banks of Tyume river. Finally the study recommended the public awareness & education campaigns & use of environmental R’s (Reduce, Recycle, Reuse).6
A study conducted under “Central pollution board (CPCB)”, relating to Assessment of plastic waste generation& its management at 2 airports & 3 railway stations in Delhi. The study envisages data on plastic waste generated at 2 airports & 3 railway stations in Delhi about 6758Kg/day, of plastic waste is generated at 3 railway stations & about 3662Kg/day at the 2 airports. The per capita plastic waste generation is approx 9gm/day at railway stations & 69gm/day at airport. The methodology adopted was desk research, field studies, data collection, analysis, interview, survey,& legislation were also consulted. Finally the study recommended the rag pickers can be included in the main stream of waste management system, plastic waste collection, segregation, transportation, & disposal shall be privatized, separate dust bins should be adopted, plastic recycling industries needed to upgrade, reusage of plastic in road constructions, public awareness programmes, use of biodegradable plastics & an independent waste management cell could be set up.8
A study conducted by “ Kenya national cleaner production centre Nairobi, Kenya prepared a comprehensive plastic waste management strategy for the city of Nairobi, reveals that the Nairobi city manufactures a total of 192,836 tons/year of plastics from a raw material, out of which 25% (i.e. 49,022 tons/year) of the total manufacturing comprises of plastic carrier bags an additional 27,813 tons/year of finished plastic products are imported into the city of the total plastic carrier bags produced in the city approx.-50% (24,511 tons/year) are less than 15 micron in thickness. The total plastic consumption in Nairobi is 211,316 tons/year. As imported & local production of plastic levels are 27,813 tons/year, 192836 tons/year respectively. Out of this the annual plastic exports estimated at 9,333 tons/year, out of this annual plastic consumption of 211,316 tons/year, 38,516 tons/year (18%) are retained & reused, while 172,800 tons/year (82%) are indiscriminately dumped into the environment with serious environmental consequences. The study proposed a wonderful strategy that “ EXPANDED STAKEHOLDER REASPONSIBILITY” i.e, motivating participation of neighbourhood association with City Council of Nairobi (CCN) to drive this strategy under 3 phases i.e, Bridging phase (for 100 days), Short term phase (for 3 years), Medium term phase (for 10 years) to implement in Embakasi area of the city Nairobi.9
An article on setting up of pyrolysis plant for plastic waste conversion into Industrial oil (Pyrolysis oil). Proposed by ‘Dr. T. Muraleedharan Nair’, “Common Facility Services Centre Manjeri, Kerala”, the study focuses on the estimated plastic waste generated in the country is approx.-10,000 tons/day. This project discusses the pyrolysis of waste plastics into useful gaseous & liquid fuels along with carbon black. The proposed project suggests conversion efficiency that is input capacity of 10,000Kgs mixed plastic waste per day can generate pyrolysis oil-6500 to 9000 lit, hydrocarbon gas-500 to 1000Kg, & carbon black -500-700Kg. Proposed project parameters envisages production capacity per annum is estimated the conversion of 31,20,000Kg of plastic wastes into 21,84,000 lit industrial oil, 1,56,000 Kg carbon black & 1,56,000 Kg hydrocarbon gas.10
2. Studies and literature related to knowledge and attitude regarding Plastic waste management
Study conducted by “Science Education Development Institute”, 2012 Volume 2 May, 2012 in Nigeria regarding Attitude towards recycling & Plastic waste management by management students in Sunyani polytechnic, Ghana. The study aims at contributing tothe body ofknowledge in the area ofPlastic waste management by examining students’ attitude towards Plastic waste recycling and the strategies for recycling. The research is based on quantitative research design and a descriptive survey of thestudentsat Sunyani Polytechnic that were selected using convenience sampling method for a sample of 139. Data were analysed using frequency, percentages and One-Way Analysis of variance (ANOVA). Respondents’ knowledgeand attitude towards plastic waste recycling is good and positive. Numerous campaigns should be launched/started through media (TV, Internet) as indicated by respondents as well as a letting peopletoknow about more affirmative benefit in terms of health, cost minimization and risk minimization of social life when the society recycle. Future studiesin the study area should be based oncomparative analysis using respondents from other departments.13