The Nilgiris has managed to work out a middle ground, as it were, to going plastic-free. There has been a 30-40% reduction in plastic waste generation since a ban took effect. With the State-wide ban on single-use plastics coming in on January 1, the hilly district could show the way.

The Nilgiris has been “plastic-free” since the beginning of 2018, when a blanket ban on most single-use plastics was announced. However, with traders and merchants opposing the ban, citing a lack of alternatives, the district administration, in consultation with citizens’ groups, has been able to work out a solution that has, on paper at least, managed to work towards a middle ground – reducing plastic waste generation over the last six months.

The efforts to curb the use of plastic packaging, and consequently reduce littering, were spearheaded by the Nilgiris district collector, Innocent Divya. The district administration, apart from banning plastic bags and other single-use plastics, also came up with measures aimed at preventing generation of waste at major tourist hotspots, and also made a concerted effort to prevent the clogging of the Kodappamund Channel.

Big impact

Officials from both the Udhagamandalam and Coonoor municipalities said that the efforts have indeed proved fruitful, with a 30-40% reduction in generation of plastic waste being reported across the Nilgiris.

J. Raghunathan, Municipal Health Officer (Coonoor Municipality), said that of the 14 tonnes of waste being generated in the municipality on a daily basis, plastic waste now constituted less than 5%; earlier, plastics used to comprise anywhere between 10-15% of the total waste collected by the municipality.

“The ban has definitely had an impact, with the district administration also banning plastic-coated plates and cups,” said Mr. Raghunathan, adding that as the municipality has had over a year to study the primary waste-generating centres, it has been able to evolve new mechanisms to combat all forms of waste generation. “We are currently looking at ways to effectively control the use of polystyrene, as it is used extensively by fish stalls in the Coonoor market,” he said.

S. Senthil Murugan, who runs the Dry Waste Collection Center in Udhagamandalam town, and processes recyclable plastic waste from Udhagamandalam, Coonoor and Gudalur, said that plastic waste being brought to the collection centre had reduced by almost 40% since the ban took effect.

New concerns

However, with the state-wide ban set to come into force, there has been confusion as to which of the rules will remain in force, said Shobana Chandrasekar, a member of the Namma Nilgiris citizens’ group. “The district-initiated ban I feel is actually much better thought out than the State-wide one,” she said, adding that the State-enforced ban could have wide ramifications for many of the cottage industries in the Nilgiris.

“For instance, small businesses such as chocolate stores and tea factories might have to rethink the way they package their products, while pre-packaged foods manufactured by bigger corporations will be allowed, which will feel unjust to local business owners,” said Ms. Chandrasekar. “The district administration, on the other hand, has allowed plastic packaging above 50 microns for products that can be stored for over 24 hours,” she added.