How do you dispose of your plastic bags and plastic bottles? Do you know that many plastics are not biodegradable?
Morelon Profit, Security Officer: ‘I dispose of my plastic bags in my garbage bin. I sometimes burn it with the rest of my garbage. If I’m on the road and eat something that was in a plastic bag I usually put the bags in my pocket until I reach home and then throw it in the bin. The garbage truck in my area would come regularly to dispose of my garbage. Sometimes when I go shopping I get a number of plastic bags and I reuse some of them. I’m aware that plastic bags do not decompose.’
Randolph King, Painter: ‘I burn my plastic bags and bottles in my yard. I know that plastic does not decompose which is why I burn it. Once, I do not have to use it I would burn the bags. I collect about 20 plastic bags upon average when I go shopping but I hardly use plastic bottles.’
Roshelle Roberts, Private Sector employee: ‘My entire family burns plastic bags that we do not need. When I go shopping I get about ten of the bags from the sales people and most times I don’t need that much. I would give away some of them and the others burn them.’
Louella Chan, UG Student: ‘I burn my plastic bags and bottles in my yard. I collect large amounts of bags and I keep some, others I would use for packing stuff, sometimes snacks. Whenever I’m on the road I put the bags and plastic bottles in a bin.’
Noel Hohenkerk, DVD vendor: ‘I put my plastic bags and plastic bottles in big garbage bags and place them in the bin. The garbage truck which comes once a week would take it away. When I’m on the road I would throw it in the bins that are provided along the roadway. Some people tend to throw the plastic bags and bottles on the road. There are also the mentally ill people who walk the streets and search the bins for food, they use and throw the bags and bottles in the drains and this clogs up the drains. I get about 50 plastic bags and some I reuse until it gets to a stage where holes appear, that’s when I dispose of them in the bins.’
Tricia Moore, security officer: ‘I place my garbage bags and plastic bottles in a bin and the garbage truck which usually comes around every Wednesday would take it away. If my garbage piles up and that includes the plastic bags I would then burn it. I know that it’s bad to throw them around the place, plastic bags clogs drains.’
Carol Gouveia, Housewife: ‘I usually put my plastic bags and bottles in a bin and then burn it. The garbage truck usually disposes of all my garbage though. I collect a number of plastic bags on a regular basis and I would keep some of it to reuse in the future. I know that they do not decompose.’
Rajendra Persaud, Cane Harvester: ‘I put my plastic bags and bottles in my bin and the village office tractor would collect it every Thursday and dispose of it. I would put all the garbage in a salt bag. If I’m on the road then I put the bags or bottles in the nearest bin.’
Mohamed Rasheed, Cane Harvester: ‘I would put all my garbage in my bin and the garbage collectors would dispose of it for me. I never have an excess amount of plastic bottles and plastic bags that I’m not using since the garbage collector in my area in Beterverwagting does a good job.’
Rehanna Whitney, Food Vendor: ‘I dispose of all my garbage including plastic bags and bottles in a bin and every week it is taken away by the garbage people. People in the bus would usually throw their plastics through the window onto the road.’