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제 6 호 Recent Environment Issues: New Types of Trash

  • 작성일 2020-06-29
  • 좋아요 Like 2
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Kicker: SCIENCE (ENVIRONMENT)


Recent Environment Issues: New Types of Trash

+ Interview with YouTube Channel, "A Trash Kingdom”


By Sarah Chae, Editor-in-Chief

sarah3fran1@naver.com


  Our lives have changed a lot because of the Corona Virus. As people's outdoor activities have lessened, fine dust and air pollution levels have been going down too. At the same time, however, it is said that a huge amount of medical and mask wastes will affect the environment soon enough. This type of trash is new to most of us. Therefore, let’s learn about new types of wastes most of us did not recognize before. Plus, do not miss out on:


     1. New types of waste: Medical and digital wastes

     2. How to reduce it + How to throw it away properly

     3. Interview with fellow SMU students who run the YouTube channel, "A Trash Kingdom(쓰레기왕국)"



New types of waste: medical and digital wastes

  Recently, we are putting on masks every day. Thousands of individuals are being tested and treated, too. Along with protective equipment, such as masks and gloves, waste from treatment such as dressings and needles have also increased significantly. The Ministry of Environment said they have burned around 800t of medical waste which is related to the Corona virus. This is not a great signal for the earth because in the process of burning these medical wastes, harmful substances such as carbon monoxide and dioxin are released. The bigger problem is that the SM Herald could not find any safe and eco-friendly masks. 

  Digital waste, which is also known as electronic waste (E-waste), is also a big issue around the world. Digital waste includes waste from electronic devices, pollution produced by manufacturing electronic devices/batteries, and pollution from the energy that is required from electronic devices. This means that in addition to device manufacturing and disposal, there is a growing impact on the environment to build and operate facilities for things like streaming and data transmission/management. Look at the picture below for more information about digital waste! 



How to reduce it + How to throw it away properly

  Masks can be reused, but only in particular cases. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, if the mask is temporarily used in a place with low pollution concerns, it can be reused by the same person. The mask that was used should be dried in a well-ventilated* area. They advised that masks should not be dried with hairdryers or disinfected with microwaves or alcohol. Originally, when wearing a mask, it is right to separate the wire and plastic parts from a mask and recycle them. However, because of worries of infection there is now a new way to throw away masks properly. Take a look at the picture below and throw your mask away safely.


*Ventilate:If you ventilate a room or building, you allow fresh air to get into it.



  It may be hard to reduce medical waste by ourselves, but there is a way to reduce digital waste for us too! From using notebooks instead of desktops and more, take a look at the picture below for more tips on reducing digital waste!



Interview with fellow SMU students who run the YouTube channel, “A Trash Kingdom(쓰레기왕국)”

  Just like a ‘Trash Kingdom’, new/old/harmful kinds of trash are piling up everywhere. However, there are people who are working hard to make a small movement and reduce waste. The SM Herald asked two SMU students for a small (e-mail) interview and thankfully, they said yes! Let’s see what these fellow SMU students who run the YouTube channel, “A Trash Kingdom(쓰레기왕국)” want to say about reducing waste! 


https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiWHm_D8N5QR-5MTXcdTtEA : Trash Kingdom YouTube Channel



Q1. These videos about zero-waste and environment you make are very helpful and meaningful. How did you get interested in environmental issues and what motivated you to produce this useful content?

A1. Just looking at the garbage, and the garbage that comes out a week in our real life, I felt that a lot of garbage was being thrown away. Once, we read this article about the sea. A sea turtle's nose was stuffed with straws, and a dead whale's belly was filled with plastic. They were suffering from the waste we dumped. At that moment, we felt the seriousness of this, and we became interested in environmental issues. Looking around at Anseo-dong, it was too easy to see that the separate recycling system is not working properly even in our own town. Environmental problems continue to be serious, and proper separation (recycling) and disposal are becoming important. We wanted to share and communicate stories about the environment with more people, so we created content about the environment. 


 Trash Kingdom member Anpaka(안파카)(on the left) and Maengseuteo(맹스터)(on the right) says they created their YouTube channel because they wanted to share and communicate stories about the environment with lots of people.


Q2. Where do these ideas come from? Is there any place you can study this kind of information?

A2. We often research about the environment on the Internet, books, and articles! For example, we get information from Internet cafes where there are people who practice zero-waste. We get ideas from articles pointing out waste problems, and more information from reading books about the environment.

  Also, there was a ‘Almaeng Workshop’ in our trash kingdom video, and I got a lot of information while talking with the people I met there! I feel like I am getting more information from meeting people.

                                                                                                  

Q3. Could you give your fellow SMU students some tips on how to reduce and learn about how to reduce waste? Or maybe could you give us some tips for what we can do for the Earth?

A3. The easiest way to reduce waste in our daily lives is to recycle properly. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Environment over the last 11 months, 54% of the waste in the standard garbage bags were recyclable. We could see that a lot of resources were being wasted even though they could be recycled in our daily lives. The most basic and simple thing we can do for the earth is recycling waste the proper way; removing and washing substances (like food), removing pet bottle labels, not putting cigarettes or other substances in bottles, and crushing cans.


Q4. Thank you for giving us great advice. Do you have any other plans for the future?

A4. We're not environmentalists and we're not faithful activists. However, we felt that the point of view of people around us who subscribe to our YouTube channel is changing. We want to think about more interesting and various videos and contents, and we ‘Waste Kingdom’ want to become a channel which can learn and communicate with more people. 

  After entering SMU, we were surprised to see how the school handles trash. The problem with our school's waste disposal system is that the only way to throw trash away is to put all kinds of trash - such as boxes, delivery food, paper, plastic bottles, and cans - all in one trash can. We think SMU should change the waste management system so we can recycle waste properly.



  The earth is unsustainable. It cannot sacrifice its resources forever. If we forget this, the price we need to pay will grow little by little. Our efforts and ideas can be never-ending, though. It is not that hard to reduce trash. Be aware, reduce some waste, and look out for your carbon/digital footprints. The SM Herald hopes you can help us in making the Earth healthier and a better place to live for everyone. 


Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiWHm_D8N5QR-5MTXcdTtEA : Trash Kingdom YouTube Channel 

http://www.undp.org/content/seoul_policy_center/en/home/presscenter/articles/2019/building-back-better--green-new-deal-in-korea-and-elsewhere.html

http://www.ecofuturenetwork.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=17513

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51385344

https://www.elle.co.kr/article/46002

http://www.greenpostkorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=114757

http://news.kbs.co.kr/news/view.do?ncd=4179561

https://research-paper.co.kr/news/view/271912

http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=202002062139005

https://research-paper.co.kr/news/view/271912

https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/a-growing-digital-waste-cloud