Every year on June 5, people celebrate World Environment Day. It helps raise awareness and inspires everyone to protect nature. In 2025, the theme is “Ending Plastic Pollution.” It urges us to stop plastic waste that harms our planet, animals, and even people’s health.
Why Plastic Pollution Is a Big Problem
Plastic pollution is one of today’s biggest environmental problems. The world produces over 400 million tonnes of plastic each year. About half of it is for single use, and people throw it away after one use. Less than 10% of this plastic gets recycled.
Every year, rivers and oceans receive around 11 million tonnes of plastic waste—as heavy as 2,200 Eiffel Towers. Tiny plastic particles called microplastics now appear in water, soil, air, and even inside our bodies. Studies show that each person may swallow or breathe in more than 50,000 plastic particles every year.
How Plastic Pollution Affects Us
Plastic waste causes serious problems:
- It harms sea life: Plastic injures or kills over 800 marine species when they swallow it or get tangled in it.
- It risks our health: Chemicals in plastic like BPA can disrupt hormones and raise the chance of cancer and other diseases.
- It costs a lot: Plastic pollution costs the world about $300–600 billion a year, affecting fishing, farming, and tourism.
What We Can Do to Help
Everyone can take action to reduce plastic pollution. Here’s how:
- Reduce: Use less single-use plastic. Carry a cloth bag, a metal bottle, or reusable containers.
- Reuse: Find ways to use plastic items again.
- Recycle: Sort waste and send plastics to recycling centers.
- Rethink: Support new ideas and laws that replace plastic with greener options.
🇰🇷 How South Korea Is Leading
South Korea, the host of World Environment Day 2025, has a plan to end plastic pollution by 2040. The country is passing new laws, working with businesses, and running public awareness campaigns.
🇮🇳 How India Is Acting
India’s Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2021 banned many single-use plastics.
India’s Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) encourages people to:
- Use less plastic
- Recycle more
- Join local clean-up efforts
A Shared Responsibility
World Environment Day 2025 reminds us that plastic pollution is a global challenge. But we can each help fix it. By reducing, reusing, recycling, and rethinking plastic use, we can build a cleaner and healthier world for the future.
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