A resident of Bong County Mr. Abraham L. B. Freeman is calling on government to increase taxes on the manufacturing and importation of plastics and plastic products.
Speaking recently in Bong, Mr.Freeman warns that the proliferation of plastics in Liberia if not controlled, will have a negative impact on the country’s environment.
He believes that if taxes are increased on the importation of plastics in the country, the proliferation of plastic bags in the streets will be curtailed here.
Mr. Freeman also wants the government of President George M. Weah to develop and enforce rules that prevent sellers from providing plastics to their customers.
Speaking on the effect of plastics on the environment, Freeman says when plastic is dumped on the land, it interacts with water and forms dangerous chemicals.
When these chemicals seep underground, he says they degrade the water quality.
Mr. Freeman warns that plastic is a man-made material produced by putting together special units of certain chemical materials, which create a texture that cannot get rotten for hundreds of years.
According to him, plastic was invented in 1907, by Leo Hendrik Baekeland in America.
“Less than 100 years later, the impact of plastic is being felt in our environment because so many plastic products are thrown away and it is realized that plastic almost lasts forever in the environment and therefore the waste mountains get bigger,” Freeman stresses.
He reveals that the effect of plastic pollution on the environment causes destruction for the natural environment, leading to long-term issues for plants, animal and people.
Mr. Freeman recommends that all plastic should be burned and citizens of the country should refuse to take plastic from anyone who wants to give it to them.
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He calls on citizens to always carry a bag in the market to place their items in it or use other bags that are not made of plastic at all times.
By Joseph Titus Yekeryan in Bong –Edited by Winston W. Parley
