'Single-use items not safest option amid COVID-19'

By Burak Bir

ANKARA (AA) - Defining single-use products as the most sanitary and the safest choice due to the coronavirus outbreak is concerning, according to an environmentalist.

"One of the things regarding the waste management, which I think you may have already observed, is that it gives rise also to plastic bags and single-use items," Kadri Kalle, program manager of Let's Do It World foundation, told at a webinar on Tuesday.

The foundation held a webinar on waste management and human behavior that gathered people, including environmentalists, from across the world.

Kalle defied the claims suggesting single-use products are more sanitary, which are normally seen harmful for the environment as they are not reusable.

"Single-use items themselves doesn't mean that they are more sanitary, because they can be touched also by many people and reusables can be as sanitary as single-use if they are washed properly."

Answering the question on the coronavirus impact on nature, as part of the waste issue, she said that although there are both positive and negative impacts, but for now, it is too soon to say what will be the overall effect, since the world are still in the middle of the situation.

Founded in 2008, Estonia-based Let’s Do It World is an international movement with a vision of a clean, healthy, and waste-free world.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China, last December, the virus known as COVID-19 has spread to at least 179 countries and regions, according to the U.S-based Johns Hopkins University database.

The data shows the confirmed number of cases worldwide has surpassed 823,400, with the death toll over 40,600 and more than 174,000 recoveries.