Eco friendly Diwali
Sunday, October 19th, 2008
Although Diwali the ‘featival of lights’ comes once a year, it leaves behind a trail of air pollution. In our zest of celebration our carelessness can have a terrible effect on the environment and our own safety.
How do we make sure that our celebrations are not harming the environment around us ? Does the fireworks an integral part of our Diwali celebrations ? Join MyBandra to celebrate Eco Friendly Diwali.
This Diwali Say NO to Crackers, Save Power & Say NO Plastic bags.
Say NO to Crackers
Firecrackers the highlight of Diwali celebrations.
Simple sparklers have now given way to elaborate fireworks that really looks beautiful in sky above your home. Greater the fireworks, better the celebrations. However its time to think, how harmful these crackers are for the environment.The crackers contain a large amount of toxic substances. These affect people in different ways as follows;
Copper: Causes irritation in the respiratory tract leading to respiratory ailments.
Cadmium: Reduces the oxygen carrying capacity of blood whicl leads to anaemia and cadmium also causes kidney damage.
Lead: has a harmful effect on the nervous system.
Magnesium: Magnesium fumes cause metal fume fever. This is a fever accompanied by a metallic taste in the mouth.
Zinc: Also causes metal fume fever and it also induces vomiting.
Sodium: Sodium combined with moisture in the air and on the skin, causes burns. It is highly reactive element.
Fireworks also produce a lot of smoke causing great discomfort. People suffering from asthama and other respiratory conditions better sit at home if they step outside any of the smoke may get into their lungs and may trigger an attack.Apart from pollution Fireworks are very noisy. Eg : Diwali favourites the ‘Laxmi bomb’ produce a sound of 100 decibels when they are burst. Any sound beyond 50 decibels is classified as being noise. This noise produced is extremely hazardous to health and sudden noise can cause temporary hearing loss.
We tend to decorate our homes by lighting them up to celebrate Diwali – the festival of light. This causes a huge load on the power supply system. Electric lights are used to decorate even roads and shops. Sometimes, these lights are left on even during the day. It’s a good idea to switch to the traditional oil lamps. Even though they consume oil, these lamps are usually used only for a short time. You may also decorate the house with fresh flowers and scented candles.
Say NO to PLASTIC
Try not to use wrapping paper and plastic; it reduces the burden on the environment. Re-use gift wrap and do not insist on packaging perishables like chocolates and mithai in a double layer of plastic. Instead try some Eco friendly gifts like – plants, home made sweets without having to pack them.
Celebrating Diwali does not mean completely giving up the things you love. However, it is time to go back to the traditional Diwali celebrations of the past. It will help to save the environment !!!
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