In the last two decades, plastic water bottles have been a constant presence in every meeting I have attended. Whether the meeting is at a coffee shop, a restaurant, an office or at the university, disposable water bottles are a permanent feature. They are present in front of athletes when they give a press conference, and they are in front of the honourable ministers in a cabinet meeting. The omnipresence of plastic bottles comes from a simple factor: trust. We no longer trust the water that comes from the tap (provided by the city, municipality, a tanker or any other system), and hence need something more trustworthy to survive on. That lack of trust is not without merit. The issues with the quality of drinking water in the country are so well-established that people gave up on it long time ago. Even the government in its meetings relies on bottled water from private companies.
But what if we may have just traded one problem with another?
Let me explain. Globally, microplastic pollution has become a major topic of concern and worry among public health experts. Microplastics are tiny, microscopic pieces of plastic that are found nearly everywhere as larger pieces of plastic break down or disintegrate. They are also found in beauty products and household cleaners. Among the sources of microplastics are plastic water bottles. Research has shown that water in plastic bottles can contain hundreds of thousands of plastic pieces per liter. One can imagine that this situation is much worse in countries with limited regulation or oversight in manufacturing and quality of plastic used highly variable.
Numerous studies have linked microplastics to cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal issues and respiratory problems. Research published by my own group earlier this month has demonstrated that microplastics can lead to the development of drug resistant infections, a process that has tremendous implications in a country like Pakistan with an already a high burden of infectious diseases. Our study shows that microplastics can allow bacteria to become resistant to a whole host of antibiotics, including ones that are our front line arsenal against serious, and life-threatening infections. The problem is particularly concerning for communities where the use of plastic is high, and sanitation systems are weak. In poor neighborhoods and urban informal settlements in our major cities, plastic pollution is acute, trash collection and recycling is non-existent, and combined with the existing high risk of infection, the impact on the health of people in the community could be substantial.
I am certainly not advocating here that people should start drinking water from their taps today – though I hope I get to live long enough to see the day when our tap water is clean (as it is in many countries) and not a source of life-threatening infections. At the same time, our blind faith in bottled water also needs a reality check. In February of this year, Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources issued a warning that at least 28 bottled water brands in the country were selling water that was unsafe for human consumption due to chemical and biological contamination. Just because the water is in a plastic bottle does not mean that it is any better than what comes out of the tap.
That said, I am arguing that we ought to think seriously about the plastic pollution from water bottles, and the implications it has on the health of our society and our future. There is little research done in the country on microplastics and its impact on human health, though the risk factors are all there. The impact on environment, on the veterinary sector and aquatic life merits serious consideration as well. Can the worry about future diseases and infections from plastic pollution lead us to clean our drinking water? I would love to imagine that possibility. But while I wait for that dream to materialise, maybe a more serious discussion on how to limit our consumption of plastic, for the sake of our own health, is an excellent start.
Source: https://tribune.com.pk/story/2534852/message-in-a-bottle