Vaping herbal leaves have become the trendy replacement for smoking. Kratom is one such emerging herbal plant originating from Southeast Asia. It is popularly becoming the choice of people for vaping. While people know that vaping kratom gives them medicinal benefits like pain relief and anti-inflammation, they are unsure of whether it is eco-friendly to vape kratom juice or not. As the coin has two sides, vaping kratom has both positive and negative impacts on the environment. Let us get to know about its environmental impacts.

Kratom Uses the Approach of Sustainability

Kratom farming gets leveraged with the increased demand for kratom. The most common implication one can derive from this is that the more the demand rises for kratom, we need to exploit more kratom plants. Moreover, this would gravely affect the environment. However, modern farmers are using a very sustainable approach to kratom farming which does not lead to exploitation of the plant. The Southeastern environment is very safe with the ongoing farming of kratom. Kratom is understory vegetation that is it grows in the shade of large trees.

They grow in the filtered sunlight penetrating through the trees above them. Thus deforestation is not involved in the rapid farming of kratom. Kratom farming is sustainable and uses ethical practices, the kratom leaves get harvested from the old mature leaves, and the entire tree does not get cut down. The best quality leaves come from trees as old as 20 years. Thus cutting the trees would be their biggest folly. Growing kratom while protecting the environment brings out the best crop of kratom. It is the beauty of the old traditional kratom agriculture.

Organic Farming & Wildlife Protection

When farming is on a large scale, the farmers use harmful chemicals, pesticides, and fertilizers. All these things get used for the fast growth of crops. These chemicals seep into the underground water and reach the other trees. Thus the use of chemicals can put the entire ecosystem in danger. However, with kratom farming, no pesticides or fertilizers are used. The best kratom crop is the one that is 100% organic. Harvest only takes place when there is a need, that too from the old trees. The harvest is careful, and the rainforest is not disturbed as it provides a canopy to the young kratom plants and the leaves.

Source- https://pixabay.com/photos/tiger-sumatra-predator-sarcophagus-4759631/

The rainforests are home to many wild animals, and deforestation takes their home away from them. The reckless cutting of trees for several uses has made many animals homeless and later extinct. Kratom farming prevents the cutting of the rainforest. It saves the homes of the wild animals residing in the rainforests. The Southeastern rainforest houses the endangered species of Sumatra tigers, and the rainforests are providing a home to the remaining 700 tigers. Thus kratom farming has overall positive impacts on the environment and human health.

Vaping Kratom Can Harm Environment in Numerous Ways

Kratom solely is not harmful to the environment, but consuming it through vaping can be an environmental concern. Vapes have three severe threats to the environment. These are increased use of one-time-use plastic, huge tech waste, and harmful chemicals on disposal. In the manufacturing of vapes, many plastic, metal, and chemicals get used for packaging. All these things fall under the category of plastic wastes, toxic wastes, and electronic waste. These wastes can be very threatening to the environment.

Plastics take hundreds of years to decompose, and they are a forever environmental problem. Vapes contribute so much to plastic waste, the body of the vaping device is made of plastic. The Kratom vaping devices use pods for different flavors. Once the juice is over, we throw the pod or cart. These pods are of plastic that contains harmful nicotine and thus cannot be recycled. These pods and cartridges also contain other hazardous chemicals. Once thrown, these chemicals can affect the environment. There is also a high chance of stray animals eating those thrown pods or cartridges. 

Vape waste increases Tech waste

The vaporizers used for vaping consist of a circuit board and battery. The lithium-ion battery releases chemicals when it is exhausted. Disposing of this e-waste is a challenge in itself. Most people use and throw the vaping devices in the nearest dustbin, but it does not end here. Electronic waste usually goes for dumping in landfills. However, the chemicals used in them can leach into the environment. They can burn the entire trash receptacle and create a problem at the dumping site. Also, throwing the e-waste like this raises the chances of the waste catching fire. It can lead to severe problems and can risk the life of the workers at landfills.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers 'Nicotine' as one harmful substance. One should not discard it in an open environment. Hazardous chemicals such as cobalt, nicotine, lead, and others from the vaping waste can badly affect the surrounding. These chemicals contaminate the underground water and soil, aquatic life, and the lives of animals who inject this. The vapes should have a proper disposal process in an eco-friendly manner. Currently, there are no safe ways to discard vaping waste. The best way to save the ecosystem is by avoiding the use of vapes.

Conclusion

Nature lovers don’t have to worry about kratom cultivation as it does not destroy the environment in any way. Kratom farming has many plus points for the rainforest and animals. You can purchase any product of kratom and avail yourself of its numerous health benefits. However, vaping kratom can be something against the environment. Vaping harms nature more than we can imagine. It generates plastic, electronic and hazardous wastes that are non-recyclable. So to wrap up, vaping kratom is not eco-friendly to the environment. You can try other ways of consuming kratom for a healthy environment.

Feature image - https://pixabay.com/photos/landscape-rainforest-path-4350845/