Duterte mulling nationwide plastic ban

The Philippine Star | November 8, 2019

President Duterte is mulling a nationwide ban on the use of plastics in a bid to mitigate climate change,
amid what sectors have claimed as a pollution crisis in the country on account of poor solid waste laws
and high usage of single-use plastic among consumers and businesses.

Duterte expressed his interest in banning plastic during last Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting, presidential
spokesman Salvador Panelo said yesterday.

During the meeting, Vernice Victorio, president and CEO of the Natural Resources Development Corp.
(NRDC), shared with the Cabinet the Priority Programs for Environment and Climate Change Resiliency.

It was during her presentation that Duterte floated the idea of banning the use of plastics, which
according to him would require legislative action, said Panelo.

The NRDC is an attached government-owned and controlled corporation of the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources.

Panelo said the plastic ban was discussed as part of the administration’s efforts to mitigate climate
change.

Two pending measures by Sens. Cynthia Villar and Francis Pangilinan that seek to ban the use of single-
use plastic are currently pending at the committee level.

The measures seek to ban food establishments, stores, markets and retailers from issuing single-use
plastic. Consumers will instead be using reusable materials, while manufacturers will be tasked to
control the circulation and disposal of single-use plastics.

The bill also seeks to give incentives to individuals and businesses that use alternative materials, as it
provides for the prohibition of the importation of single-use plastic.

A 2015 report on plastic pollution ranked the Philippines as the third biggest source of plastic leaking
into the oceans, after China and Indonesia.

The environmental group Bangon Kalikasan Movement urged President Rodrigo Duterte to push his idea
of issuing an executive order (EO) banning single-use plastics (SUPs) after the President mentioned in a
Cabinet meeting the possibility of banning SUPs.

The group’s president, Joey Papa, said the EO could activate the Ecology Center System of Republic Act
No. 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, that would ban SUPs.

EcoWaste Coalition asks Congress to pass bills on prevention of plastic pollution

The Manila Bulletin | November 8, 2019

Environmental group EcoWaste Coalition asked the Senate and Congress to prioritize the passing of
pending plastic pollution prevention bills on the heels of President Duterte’s recent pronouncement
regarding the possibility of banning plastics in the country.

“Banning plastics, particularly single-use plastics or SUPs, will have a tremendous impact on the
country’s humongous waste production estimated at over 40,000 tons per day of which a huge portion
is comprised of plastic residuals,” said Jove Benosa, Zero Waste Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.

“Banning SUPs will help in curbing the chemicals and plastics choking our fragile environment,” he
added.
SUPs are plastic-based materials created to be used once before they are disposed of or recycled such as
bottles, cutlery, cups, sachets, stirrers, straws, and the omnipresent plastic bags and polystyrene
containers or Styrofoam.

“Banning SUPs will mean less throw-away plastics being produced, consumed and disposed of, less fossil
fuels used and less greenhouse gases emitted, less plastic waste dumped or incinerated, and less plastic
spilling into our water bodies and harming aquatic life,” said Benosa.

Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator of the EcoWaste Coalition, emphasized the importance of the 18th
Congress enacting a national ban on SUPs to address the plastic pollution crisis.

“Such a law is needed to stimulate and strengthen actions by local government units to address the
menace of disposable plastics. Aside from targeting SUPs for phase-out within a reasonable timeframe,
the law should promote and incentivize the shift to ecological alternatives, and encourage business and
industry to invest in sustainable product packaging and delivery systems,” Lucero noted.

Citing a 2018 UN report on SUPs, the EcoWaste Coalition identified some of the environmental problems
associated with SUPs, including plastic bags clogging waterways and exacerbating natural disasters,
plastics being ingested by marine animals who mistake them for food, and toxic emissions from the
burning of plastic waste.

According to the said report, “Styrofoam products, which contain carcinogenic chemicals like styrene
and benzene, are highly toxic if ingested, damaging the nervous system, lungs and reproductive organs.
The toxins in Styrofoam containers can leach into food and drinks.”

Another report released in February 2019 titled “Plastic & Health: The Hidden Cost of a Plastic Planet“
said that “roughly two-thirds of all plastic ever produced has been released into the environment and
remains there in some form—as debris in the oceans, as micro- or nanoparticles in air and agricultural
soils, as microfibers in water supplies, or as microparticles in the human body.”

Plastic “slowly fragments into smaller particles where they contaminate the air, water, and soil,
accumulate in food chains, and release toxic additives or concentrate additional toxic chemicals in the
environment, making them bioavailable again,” the report said.

What's lacking in our plastic laws?

Rappler.com | October 28, 2019

The Philippines has one of the richest marine ecosystems in the world and yet it is among the top
sources of plastic trash leaking into oceans.

Who's the culprit? Advocates point to the booming sachet economy and the lack of policies in place to
regulate single-use plastics, let alone ban it.

In a September 21 brand audit by the Break Free from Plastic (BFFP) movement, over 3,700 volunteers
in 20 locations across the country picked up over 37,000 pieces of plastic trash for the World Clean-up
Day.

In a single day's worth of collection, they picked up about half (47.28%) of the total trash or 17,502
pieces of unbranded plastic trash.

The other half were from multinational companies, with Coca-Cola (7.58%), Nestlé (4.74%), and
Universal Robina Corporation (4.34%) topping the list.
According to the BFFP report, top plastic materials collected were Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) and
Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET). Some examples of LDPE are squeezable bottles, food wraps, and
bags, while PET are usually in the form of softdrink and water bottles.

Earlier this March, the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Asia Pacific found that Filipinos
use more than 163 million plastic sachet packets daily, or nearly 60 billion sachets a year.

Affordability and convenience are among the reasons why Filipinos continue to patronize single-use
packaging.

This can easily be addressed by bringing non-single-use packaging such as tumblers or tupperwares at
stores, advocates said, just like how it was done before the boom of the sachet economy. But old habits
die hard.

With the "tingi" (retail) economy now deeply ingrained in Filipino culture, what can be done to reduce
plastic pollution?

Recycling not enough

Republic Act (RA) No. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 served as a landmark
legislation for managing wastes in the country. It tasked LGUs or local government units to have solid
waste management plans for the government to oversee.

While there is a law on waste management, LGUs are struggling to implement it.

These plans should have guidelines for reusing, recycling, and composting wastes generated in their
areas. Fast forward to 2019, or nearly two decades after the law was passed, less than half (41.96%) of
the LGUs in the Philippines have approved 10-year plans.

Under RA 9003 and its implementing rules and regulations, plastics are categorized as "recyclable
materials." Thus, LGUs should include plastics in their recycling programs.

Apart from RA 9003, there are no other laws that specifically regulate plastic use.

The problem with recycling as the lone policy for plastics is that sachets, as small plastic packets, are
often lined with aluminium or contain other materials that make them nonrecyclable. This leads to a
high volume of residual waste, or waste that cannot be recycled or composted.

Environmental groups said that recycling is far from enough to deal with what they called a "plastic
pollution emergency."

"Plastic recycling is not enough. We have to turn off the tap of single-use plastic," Monica Wilson of
GAIA USA said at the International Zero Waste conference in Penang, Malaysia.

"We need to have systems," Wilson added.

Among Philippine local governments, San Fernando City in Pampanga leads the way in eliminating
residual waste, in a bid to reduce plastic pollution and bring down government expenses on trash.

San Fernando City has brought residual waste to just 20% in 2018 – the first city to do so – from 85%
when they first started establishing material recovery facilities (MRFs) in 2013.

San Fernando City Mayor Edwin Santiago made sure that barangays, establishments, and schools have
their own MRFs. Now, the city has a total of 103 MRFs that conduct segregation-at-source.
"We have to put our money in education and health care. That's why we are spending about P12 million
– and not P70 million – for solid waste," Santiago said. (READ: Philippine city shows zero waste is
achievable)

Santiago acknowledged that the national government has been very helpful in their initiative, but he
said that a single local government cannot do everything to totally remove plastics in the consciousness
of Filipinos.

"We cannot avoid using plastic, but we have to manage," Santiago said.

Sachet away

Multinational corporations like Nestlé, Unilever, Procter & Gamble, and Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines
have already issued commitments to find more sustainable solutions to their packaging.

But since the law stated that plastics are treated as recyclables, these commitments are geared towards
just that.

The United Nations Environment Assembly, of which the Philippines is part, has adopted resolutions
stressing the importance of long-term elimination of trash in the oceans and addressing single-use
plastic pollution.

Globally, at least 127 of 192 countries have policies ranging from a partial ban to a progressive phase-
out of plastics products. But no country has so far instituted a "total ban" on plastics, as some still allow
its "biodegradable" counterparts.

In its March report, the UN recommended the passage of specific legislation regulating plastic –
particularly requiring manufacturers to reduce waste or for them to have policies on extended
producers' responsibility. This means recognizing their responsibility beyond the sale of their product
and providing, for example, for in-store recycling and upcycling.

The world body also recommended adopting recycling targets and charge enough to discourage the
purchase of plastic products.

"As knowledge and understanding of the scale of the problem of plastic pollution grows, more
concerted action will be required at the national level to address the scale of the marine pollution
problem caused by plastics," the UN said.

Several lawmakers at the Senate and the House of Representatives have filed bills with an end goal of
banning single-use plastics. But all of these progressive measures have yet to be taken up by their
respective committees.

Senate

Total phase-out

At the Senate, at least 3 senators have filed bills pushing for the total phaseout of single-use plastics –
Senator Francis Pangilinan (SB 40), Senator Cynthia Villar (SB 333), and Senator Manny Pacquiao (SB
557).

These bills were a version of the proposed measure, filed by then-senator and now House Deputy
Speaker Loren Legarda during the 17th Congress, which she has also filed at the House this Congress.
Under their bills, Villar and Pangilinan want a ban on plastic importation.
The proposed penalties for violation range from P5,000 to P100,000 and revocation of license for small
businesses. Big enterprises and plastic manufacturers may be slapped P50,000 to P1 million and may not
be eligible for a renewal of business license for a period of 5 years.

Straws

Senator Risa Hontiveros and Senator Sonny Angara, meanwhile, are pushing for regulation of plastic
straws.

While Hontiveros wants a ban on straws in food service establishments, Angara wants a mandatory P2-
fee per requested plastic straw.

Both bills exempt senior citizens and persons with medical conditions from the coverage of the
proposed measure.

Use of biodegradable plastics

Senator Lito Lapid and Senator Nancy Binay are both pushing for a measure that would require
establishments to provide biodegradable plastic bags or other alternatives, instead of the usual single-
use ones.

House of Representatives

At the House of Representatives, 23 bills were filed by congressmen geared towards either imposing
more taxes on plastic bags or a nationwide ban on single-use plastics and straws:

Ban

Several congressmen have filed their own versions similar to Legarda's bill too. The main contention
among these versions lies in the phaseout time – whether just a year or 3 years – to carry out the
ambitious banning of plastics.

Meanwhile, Bataan Representative Geraldine Roman had filed House Bill No. 3537 banning single-use
plastics in commercial establishments, while Bohol Representative Joy Tambunting wants a ban in
tourism sites as provided in HB 4724.

Iloilo 3rd District Representative Lorenz Defensor wants to ban plastics in advertising, including election
paraphernalia.

Straws

When it comes to food and beverages, Quezon City Representative Precious Castelo filed HB 3537
banning straws in restaurants, while Tambunting's HB 3725 seeks to ban the use of nonrecyclable
materials as food containers.

In-store recovery

Tambunting and Agusan del Norte congressman Lawrence Lemuel Fortun, in separate bills, seek to
require in-store recovery programs for plastics.

Taxation

Sultan Kudarat 2nd District Representative Horacio Suansing Jr and Nueva Ecija 1st District
Representative Estrellita Suansing wanted to approach regulation of plastics through taxation. They're
proposing a P10 levy on every plastic bag.
In 2011, Legarda and the late senator Miriam Defensor Santiago had been pushing for a total plastic bag
ban since the 15th Congress. These bills never moved past the committee level.

With the opening of a new Congress last July, lawmakers still have plenty of time to pass their proposed
measures until 2022.

Will we see these bills finally moving in the coming months? Or will we see a repeat of the past
Congresses where discussions were stalled?