The State Ecological Inspectorate of the Polissya District calls for the abandonment of artificial flowers on memorial days and the use of ecological alternatives.
This was reported by the press service of the State Ecological Inspectorate of the Polissya District.
"Disposal of waste from artificial flowers and beautification of cemeteries depends on local communities. Therefore, some territorial communities have already decided to ban plastic decorations in cemeteries. And this is a significant step on the way to solving this problem. Also, at the end of February 2023, a petition with a request to ban to distribute artificial flowers was made public by a resident of the city of Ostrog on the website of the President of Ukraine," said Oksana Khavanska, head of the department of state environmental supervision (control) of handling waste and hazardous chemicals of the Polissky District Environmental Protection Agency.
She emphasizes that currently there are no clear legal acts that would regulate the use or prohibition of artificial flowers.
As you know, artificial flowers are made from synthetic plastics, threads and paper, which are treated with paraffin. Under the influence of sunlight, they can not only emit an unpleasant smell, but also cause a fire.
"During burning, such materials release harmful substances dangerous to health: phenol, formaldehyde, nitrogen oxides and sulfur and dioxins. Artificial flowers cannot be covered with earth, because their decomposition period is up to 200 years, the surrounding soil is polluted with poisonous substances," — reports Tetyana Kozlova, head of the sector of interaction with the public and mass media of the State Inspectorate of Polissky District.
According to her, fresh flowers and plants will look more impressive and, most importantly, will not cause any harm to the environment. Ecoinspection once again urges to be conscious and not to create additional problems for yourself or the people around you.
"As a result of Russian aggression, the ecosystem of Ukraine has suffered very large losses, so let's not add additional damage to it with our irresponsible actions. While honoring the memory of the dead, let's think about the living," Kozlova added.
As EcoPolitic previously reported, Ukrainians were urged to refrain from placing artificial flowers in cemeteries, because they cause pollution, fires, and emissions of toxic, particularly carcinogenic, substances.
