Sacolas plásticas: destinações sustentáveis e alternativas de substituição

Abstract

<jats:p>Independentemente do material adotado como melhor estratégia para uso em sacolas, cada um tem um destino final ideal que pode ser: compostagem, reciclagem mecânica, reciclagem energética, aterros sanitários, entre outros. Assim, a infra-estrutura de coleta, identificação e disposição do resíduo pós-consumo desse material deve estar associada à escolha feita para garantir sua sustentabilidade sócio-econômica. Além disso, soluções ainda controversas com relação ao real impacto no meio ambiente, não podem ser condenadas, nem incentivadas, mas devem sim ser avaliadas. Nesse sentido, cabe à comunidade científica fornecer bases sólidas e confiáveis, para que as avaliações sejam baseadas em uma visão global do problema. Foi com esse objetivo que elaboramos o presente trabalho, expondo questões críticas e relatando as diferentes soluções adotadas no mundo, inclusive sobre avaliações de impactos ambientais das diferentes alternativas para minimizar e/ou solucionar os problemas relacionados ao uso de sacolas plásticas.</jats:p>

<b>Analysis of social and environmental practices related to conscious consumption of students from public education of Sertão Pernambucano, Brazil

“…Considering that a plastic bag, like other polyethylene derivatives, can take more than 100 years to degrade in the environment (Viana, 2010), it is essential to educate the student to raise awareness about this problem, making important to perform actions related to the reduction and reuse of plastic bags (Santos, Freire, Costa, & Manrich, 2012).…”

Impacts of the “Plastic Bag Law” in the Grocery Retail in the city of São Paulo/Brazil

“…The economic advantages of common plastics that allow reuse, such as durability and resistance to moisture and chemicals, are the same as those that incorporate a serious negative environmental aspect (Fabro, Lidemann & Vieira, 2007). Due to these characteristics, the inappropriate disposal of the bags negatively impacts the environment, since its decomposition process can take from 100 to 400 years (Santos et al, 2012). This fact has motivated the development of public policies and laws that promote the reduction of the use of the plastic bags or even their banishment.…”

“…It should be noted that the use of bags produced by other materials, such as biodegradable, degradable, paper or reusable bags, is an alternative to plastic bags, however, whatever the chosen alternative, the associated environmental impact still exists. Therefore, Santos et al (2012) argue that sustainable consumption is based on two pillars, which have less impact on the environment. The first pillar is to reduce the generation of waste in the smallest amount possible, followed by a better disposal of the same, so that they generate smaller impacts.…”

Characterization and Lifetime Estimation of High Density Polyethylene Containing a Prodegradant Agent

“…According to Santos et al [9], oxibiodegradable plastics are not supposed to be sent for either composting or anaerobic digestion or to degrade in sanitary landfills. They were designed to degrade and then biodegrade in the presence of oxygen, thus returning to the carbon biological cycle.…”