Several states in India have embraced a new technology for resuing the vast quantities of plastic waste that the country produces: building roads from recycled plastics. Tamil Nadu, a state in the south of the nation, reports using over 1,600 tons of plastics in over 1,000 kilometers of road construction in the last several years.
Between water bottles, plastic bags, and jerry cans, plastic ware has a rooted role in Indian society (and in most other places as well). The construction of plastic roads is beneficial three-fold: 1. It keeps plastics out of landfills where they will sit for thousands of years taking up space and emitting toxins; 2. They create positive infrastructure for the people; 3. They give people jobs. Those who collect the recycling has more business, and those who are learning to shred and sort the plastics have a new source of income for themselves and their families.
Nevertheless, some environmentalists say that this solution is a band-aid to the problem and that we must focus on stalling the production of plastics in the first place. What do you think?
