Flex banners fill ground HEAPS OF FLEXES: Seized flexes being piled up at the back of Vaidyudhi Bhavan in the city. By Faris Arakkal WHAT an irony__a seminar purportedly held to protect soil and land was displaying a huge banner on the dais made of plastic, an enemy of the environment. Flex is a kind of plastic which can have a disastrous effect on the earth. Flex banners are getting more and more popular because of the material's durability, quality of the print and the low cost of production. With the result, the city being virtually swamped by flex boards and banners. Most restaurants and shops use flex posters to advertise themselves. The State Pollution Control Board had recommended a ban on use of flex boards and banners during the last local body elections. Based on that, the Election Commission had banned the use of the material during electioneering. But the Kerala high court quashed the order subsequently. The city's Swaraj Round has been made free of flex hoardings following an outcry from environmentalists. The Corporation Council has banned the use of flex material on the Round. However, it was not done for environmental reasons but because the hoardings were impeding the vision of motorists. The then existing flex hoardings were promptly pulled down and placed at the dump near Vaidyuthi Bhavan, where all the old banners too had been chucked. The security guard at the ground prevents anyone from removing them from there. Accumulation of this non-degradable waste there has dangerous consequences. Splitting of the chemical components pollutes the air and inhaling of the gas is hazardous to health. The Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011 talk of strict rules "to ensure safe collection, storage, segregation, transportation, processing and disposal of plastic waste". It also stresses on recycling. Apparently, these rules do not apply to our corporation. The authorities simply shrug off any responsibility saying the product has not been banned. Fan clubs of film stars too use flex extensively. Whenever a new film is released in the city, hundreds of flex boards portraying the star are mounted. After a few days of celebration, the flex boards are left to their fate. According to a flex producer in the city, Gujarat is the only place where flex is recycled. But he expects more plants to come up at different parts of the country. Another flex maker of the city maintains a claim that the material gets decayed in a couple of days and is harmless. But Dr CM Joy, president of Association for Environment Protection, Aluva, rubbished the idea. "It could degrade in front of our eyes but never in reality". The polyvinylchloride (PVC) used for flex was not biodegradable, he insisted. At the same time, a total elimination of plastic is not a good idea. The material has many positive uses, such as in surgeries, Joy said.