It's a shame to live in garbage
Each year Russia produces about 70 million tons of waste, of which only 4.5% is used. The rest of the garbage is sent to landfills for landfill. Besides authorized landfills, the capacity of which is practically exhausted, there are many unauthorized landfills that pollute the soil, water, air and harm human health.
Much of the waste is the “fruit” of our consumption. Being at home, people & nbsp; as a rule, & nbsp; throw a variety of garbage in a bag and then take it out to specially designated places.
But when a person leaves their home, they, unfortunately, do not care about the presence of debris under their feet. Each of us sees used coffee mugs, candy wrappers or face masks on the sidewalk, boardwalk or park every day. And, as a rule, passes.
Not everyone may know that the Russian Code of Administrative Offenses provides for fines for throwing garbage in public places: parks, streets, shopping malls, educational and medical establishments. For individuals, the fine can be up to 2,000 rubles, for legal persons & mdash; up to 5,000 rubles. But these measures do not seem to be working very well.
The carrot and the stick
And what to do, & nbsp; if the fines for violators of urban cleanliness are supplemented by incentives for those who report the facts of pollution? Such a proposal was expressed in the project “ 20 ideas for the development of Russia ''. entrepreneur and activist Dmitry Davydov … Its essence is to “ give the possibility to all legal entities and individual entrepreneurs who will install cameras on sidewalks, in the courtyards of residential buildings and buildings, to record violations … and to record violations … Act as authorized applicants. & # 39; & # 39; The state will share with them 50% of the amount of the fine collected from the offender. The Authorized Claimant will remit part of this amount to the person who notifies them of the violation.
Of course, there will be skeptics who find this proposition unfeasible for various reasons. What should I tell them? If we speak on the right side of the matter, then it is easy to pass the corresponding legislative standard. It will not be a problem to create an “ environmental police '', to which the state will give the responsibility for the control of cleanliness.
There are also no technological barriers. Additional video cameras & mdash; there are so many in cities & mdash; It is not difficult to establish, as well as to develop mobile applications that allow the transmission of visual evidence of violation in real time. And it is possible to introduce them into the personal identification program, which will determine the initial data of the offender. And almost everyone has smartphones with cameras.
The question arises: would anyone like to report the polluters of yards and streets? Surely, many will perceive this as a whistleblower, which is not held in high regard in our country. But given the social importance of cleanliness control and the real reward, students, retirees, housewives might well get involved in the common cause.
Collect, sort and dispose wisely
All developed countries have clear rules for the collection, sorting and disposal of waste, and a wealth of practical experience has already been accumulated. For example, in Switzerland, landfills have been totally banned since 2000. 75% of the garbage is recycled there, 25% is incinerated, but in such a way that heat and electricity result. Private companies are engaged in the collection and treatment of waste, and citizens and businesses sort nearly 50 categories of waste & mdash; from different types of plastic to different types of batteries.
In Russia, as part of the National Project & # 39; & # 39; Ecology & # 39;, calculated for 2019-2024, a & # 39; garbage reform & # 39; & # 39; & # 39; ; is in progress. Its purpose is & mdash; & nbsp; eliminating illegal landfills and switching to selective waste collection, sorting and recycling for reuse. There are already good examples in the regions. Thus, the real estate stock of the Sverdlovsk region is transferred to selective waste collection: 27,000 container sites have been built in the houses of 29 municipalities. They have separate containers for plastic and waste paper as well as traditional containers for sorted and unsorted waste.
There are other positive examples that can be cited in the Moscow region, as well as in the cities of Almetyevsk, Nizhnekamsk, Tver. But there is something alarming: according to the survey, only 25% of respondents use separate containers to collect garbage in their house/apartment. & Nbsp;
How to motivate irresponsible citizens? The project '20 ideas for the development of Russia' it is proposed that they be obliged to purchase specially supplied 'garbage bags, the price of which includes a special collection for sorting and disposal. »Violators must be identified and sanctioned by the environmental police. Indeed, why not introduce such a measure in Russia for the early realization of the whole “ garbage reform ''? Goals ?
Secondary & nbsp; does not mean bad
What in the world is not produced from waste! For example, in Japan, recycled plastic bottles are used to make sportswear, stationery, office furniture, and school uniforms. In Sweden, biogas is obtained from waste, which is used for urban transport needs.
Modern incinerators are miniature thermal and power plants that generate electricity. In Germany alone, there are more than 100 factories of this type, where more than 18 million tonnes of waste is recycled.
The problem of waste disposal has also been taken seriously in Russia. As part of the national project “ Ecology & # 39; & # 39; state company Rostec jointly with Rosatom and VEBom.RF will build at least 25 waste incineration plants in regions, where previously sorted waste will be turned into electricity. Three of these factories, according to Rostec, have already been put into operation in the Moscow region. Each of them is designed to process up to 700,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste (MSW) and generate 70 MW of electricity.
Private companies will help to cope with the complete elimination of waste if they are involved in this field. For a quick fix to this problem, Dmitry Davydov, for example, offers to offer tax incentives to companies investing in the waste treatment industry. In the first 10 years, they will pay “ only 1-3% of the profits. '' provided that they install equipment oriented to world standards and corresponding to the most modern analogues and the most stringent selection criteria. & nbsp;
Such a measure would promote the activation of entrepreneurial activity in the country, increase the income side of the budget due to new investment projects and additional income from taxes and fees.
Eco-culture of young nails
Dmitry Davydov is also right that environmental education should start in childhood. It is in her that it is best to sow seeds for eco-cultivation. By the way, in Europe and Japan they are taught from kindergarten. Children are sensitive not only to the beauty of nature, but also quickly learn how to keep the room and yard clean, and how to clean up garbage at home and on the street. Especially when the learning is done in the form of a game.
In Russia, environmental education, although declared in the federal law “ on the protection of the environment '', has not become systemic & mdash; in part, children learn about its basics in biology lessons or the world around them. Eco-lessons in schools are optional & mdash; here a lot depends on the position of the director of the educational institution and the teaching staff.
I am happy that enthusiasts of public organizations implement interesting projects. One of them & mdash; created by the interregional movement “ ECA & # 39; & # 39; 'Ecoclass' educational portal, where 30 lessons are collected to help teachers, and in an interactive game format. For 6 years, about 60 thousand teachers have provided such courses in their schools for 2 million schoolchildren. & Nbsp;
And this is not the only initiative. In schools in St. Petersburg, eco-courses in Russian and English, for example, on food waste and greening vacations, are organized by the Bellona Environmental Law Center. This means that we have some good examples of & mdash; need to broaden the experience of activists across the country.
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