Welcome students, how are you in 2019? In 2019, there was a great deal of convenience in living in a more advanced society. But the environment continues to be destroyed by overdevelopment and industrialization. Therefore, we decided to investigate the degree of plastic use by Daegu University students in relation to environmental pollution. In addition, we talked about the problem with plastic use and how to deal with students' plastic use.

The data collection site was next to a restaurant located in the student union building, where students have a large floating population. The survey was conducted for four days from November 4 to 7. The question was, "What do students use the most among the following items?" Students attached stickers to the corresponding items. Items had a total of three options, disposable straws, disposable cups and disposable spoons. The actual survey is shown in the picture above.

We tabulated the survey results. First, a total of 286 students voted for us. According to the survey, the most frequently used items were disposable straws, followed by disposable cups and disposable spoons. Disposable straws were the most popular item with 146 votes. Disposable straws passed half of the total number of voters. Next, disposable cups got 80 votes. And disposable spoons received 60 votes. As a result, students' use of disposable straws was overwhelmingly higher than the other two items.

L.L.F reporter Ga-Hee Lee

The second survey was conducted through interviews with students. The first question of the interview was ‘What problems are associated with the use of disposable plastics?’ There have been many stories about this issue, but there are three representative ones. First, the opinion was that disposable plastics can cause environmental pollution problems at the door when it takes a long time to biodegrade. Second, the habitual use of disposable plastics has led to health problems caused by absorption of harmful substances. Third, disposable plastics are left in nature, causing damage to wildlife that eat them. The second question in the interview was ‘What actions and / or alternatives are there for single-use plastics?’

There were four answers to this question. First, use personal tumblers instead of take-out glasses when I go to a café. Also, using your own tumblers instead of using plastic cups in libraries and rest areas is another way. The second was to make products easier to disassemble by using non-plastic materials such as vinyl and straws. A third opinion was that plastic that was not used was not left unattended, but instead used to hold the eco-bag to build a house, or to use it as accessories. Finally, a national-level system was presented to reduce plastic use by preparing a legal system for plastic use.

These days, most people are aware of the seriousness of the problems caused by plastic use. However, I think we need to do more than be aware of the problem. We need to follow through with changing our behavior and stop using plastics. If we collectively stop using plastics, society will find a solution to the problem much quicker. I also believe that efforts should be made not only on the personal level but also on the national level, such as the revision of the law on institutionalization.

L.L.F reporter Sang-Beom Lee