Death by plastic
By
Salama A Salama
Today's column is dedicated to those who are resisting the implementation of a structured system of garbage collection and then its disposal using modern techniques. They are, indeed, the very same people who are determined to live up to the appalling standards of public cleanliness in Egypt.
One Egyptian company, which specialises in the export of scented and medical plants to Europe, was recently surprised to receive a report from the importer of its products. The report warned that the company could not continue importing such products from Egypt because they contained unacceptably high levels of dioxin. After investigation, scientists at the Egyptian company discovered that the high levels of dioxin were caused by the burning of plastics, found in enormous quantities in the garbage collected from both urban and rural areas. The resulting fumes and other by-products remain in the soil, air and in subterranean water. They are, incidentally, extremely carcinogenic, penetrating the uterus, harming the embryo, tainting the mother's production of milk. And as icing on the cake, they damage the respiratory system.
Plastic carrier bags, liquid containers, endless plastic packaging: mountains of the stuff are discarded daily. It all ends up in heaps, dotted around towns and cities, which is then incinerated in the open, no more than an arms length from densely populated areas, if not entirely in the midst of them. The process converts the plastic into clouds of noxious fumes which then manage to infect the air, earth and water.
What is ironic is that there are no laboratories in Egypt which measure the amount of dioxin in the environment. There are no laboratories in either the faculties of agriculture or the Ministry of Health. True, after a long search, the company mentioned above finally discovered a laboratory which has the facilities to measure levels of dioxin, and yes, this was at the Ministry of Agriculture. But it specialised in testing animal products and was not equipped to complete the same tests on plant materials. The laboratory was, indeed, established with the help of European funding, its aim being to prevent the export of animal products containing dioxin from being imported into European markets.
European markets, which may well want to import produce from Egypt, are now in the business of protecting their consumers by setting up laboratories to ensure that, along with the desired produce they are not importing dangerous toxins. As for what we consume, along with our children, in the form of animal or agriculture products, seems no one's concern. Whatever dangers Egyptian consumers face are simply brushed under the carpet, much as the fatal diseases which such toxins disperse in our community are brushed away. In fact, we positively encourage the spread of such diseases by continuing to burn massive quantities of household plastics in open furnaces according to the primitive traditions the guardians of traditional garbage collection seem determined to protect.
This raises some very serious questions for the companies and bodies responsible for garbage collection, cleaning up and disposing of waste. Should plastics be separated from other garbage at the collecting point? Can there be an entity responsible for raising awareness among both producers and consumers about the dangers of burning plastic in open spaces? Does the state now know why our exports are receding?
