Ateneo de Naga University Senior High School

Humanities and Social Sciences

HMSS117 - Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

AN ANALYSIS ON THE LAND, WATER, AND AIR POLLUTION

IN THE PHILIPPINES THROUGH THE LENS OF

STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM AND

SOCIAL CONTRACT

Submitted by:

Tapan, Xyrah Angela Mae D.

HU22

Submitted to:
 Johnly B. Lorca

Background of the Problem

Pollution is the contamination of the environment. It is a problem that everyone faces,

including the Philippines. The Philippines belongs to the third-world countries which are countries

that are uneconomically stable thus suffer from large amounts of poverty. This country is ranked

by Numbeo as the 27th country who contributes pollution with a pollution index of 74.55.

According to Wallerstein, the pollution in the Philippines rocketed ever since 1970 when

the population of the Filipinos suddenly increased compared to other countries. With more people,

there are more wastes being produced. In this decade, businesses began to package their products

through single-use throwaway sachets — plastics with a thin layer of plastic on the outside and

aluminum on the inside. There became more plastics that clogged More cars were bought, causing

more carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Urbanization and industrialization decrease the quality

of the environment, especially in areas populated by most Filipino citizens and in areas where

agricultural and industrial activities are made. With more pollution comes with more

environmental problems like global warming and climate change.

Land pollution in the Philippines is very much evident as people stroll down the road where

they can see different wastes improperly disposed. The Philippines is rated 65.18 by Numbeo in

terms of dissatisfaction with garbage disposal which is above moderate in the orange area. In terms

of being dirty and untidy, the Philippines is rated 63.28 which is also above moderate.

Countries in Southeast Asia including the Philippines have been importing wastes of other

developed countries like United Kingdom, United States, and Canada. They do this since exporting

their waste is cheaper than the cost of processing their waste since the laws they have are tighter.

Then, Philippines imports it in exchange for money. But recently, they have sent back the imported
wastes to the country they belonged to, for they became afraid of the detriments it may bring later

on to the environment.

The Philippines is an archipelago that is composed of 7,641 islands that is surrounded by

vast waters. It is used by Filipinos as a commercially, residentially, and publicly. On the aspect of

the water pollution in the Philippines, according to the iBan Plastic Team, one of the rivers in

Bulacan which is known as the Marilao River is included in the top 10 most polluted rivers in the

world with a high pollution index of 73.95. Moreover, a report done by Ocean Conservancy charity

and McKinsey Center for Business and Environment last 2015 shows that Philippines is the third

largest source of plastic pollution that goes into oceans. They produce 2.7 million tons of plastic

waste in which 20% pollutes the oceans.

In terms of air pollution, according to the 2018 report of the World Health Organization,

Philippines is third in the most deaths caused by air pollution, next to China and Mongolia. Every

one out of four deaths in the Philippines are due to air pollutants with a size of less than or equal

to 2.5 micrometers. Air monitoring stations show how the air in the Metro Manila area are 500%

to 900% above the safe level. Vehicles like old jeepneys and inefficient motorbikes are the major

contributor of carbon monoxide in the atmosphere. The air quality in the Philippines has a pollution

index of 66.90 which is above moderate in the orange area.

Causes

There are many different causes of pollution, depending on the type of pollution, may it be

land, water, or air pollution. But, if we look at it through the lens of Structural Functionalism, it

can be seen how the different sectors in the Philippines do not care about how much pollution they

have generated. Businesses like corporations who make subdivisions in different areas do
deforestation so that the land would be paved. Commercial businesses produce their branded

plastics like plastic straws, plastic bags, plastic cups, and other plastics that serve as their

packaging. The government lack political will on pollution-based problems and is slow on taking

actions regarding this problem. They are not strict on people who throw their wastes on the side

of the road and on different bodies of water like on rivers, lakes, and seas. Many people get away

with improper waste management which is against Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of

2000. But, this law is not implemented in all pats of the country because the funds for disposal get

corrupted by the local government. On the other hand, families, the basic unit of the society, also

play a role in pollution. Education first starts at home with the family, wherein children would first

learn the values and actions taught to them, including proper waste management and disposal. The

values and acts they learned serve as their basis of what is wrong or right and is still lived upon

even when they have already grown up.

Another cause is the behavior of Filipino citizens. Based on the theory Social Contract —

wherein the citizens of a country or state conforms to the common good whether they like it or not

— the Filipinos are doing the total opposite of this theory by Rosseau. There are laws protecting

the environment like the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act that not all Filipinos follow.

Even the simple rule of not endangering the environment through maintaining its cleanliness is not

followed. This is because the Filipinos lack discipline, educated or not. Another factor to the loss

of discipline is poverty wherein people live by the riverbanks and thus pollute it because they do

not have the capability to buy and live in their own houses. Although scholastic education is not

the basis of discipline, since many people are still undisciplined despite studying in the best schools

around, it still may be a factor that can contribute to the shaping of one’s behavior.
 Impacts

Land pollution is about the exhaustion of the earth's land resources due to man’s abusive

doings. The land degrades affecting all the inhabitants of Earth, reducing the capacity of the

environment to cope up and support life forms. Through the exploitation of land, it is impossible

to control the land being contaminated with unwanted chemicals and harmful agricultural

practices. With this, the Earth's surface is being destroyed and thus giving rise to problems such

as deforestation, habitat destruction, and putting the lives of man, animals, and the environment in

danger. Human activities is the main root of all problems like habitat destruction and the extinction

of several species. The clearing of forests greatly affects the species since their lives are depending

on their habitat and this leads to habitat fragmentation, geological processes, and climate change.

Water covers 71% of Earth’s surface as it is essential for the survival of all the species

living on it. Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies. It is when harmful substances

are introduced into a body of water and it becomes contaminated affecting the life of the species

living and depending on it. According to the nrdc, 80% of the world’s untreated wastewater is

dumped back into the environment, polluting the different bodies of water. This causes the water

to be contaminated and unsafe to humans, animals and the environment, unsafe water contains

diseases and waterborne pathogens which is spread throughout the world. This is why it is the

major cause of illness from contaminated drinking water. These contaminants are toxic to aquatic

life, preventing several species to reproduce and killing them by starvation thus it makes their life
span short. According to WEPA, 58% of ground water is contaminated with coliform, thus making

the country spend 1.3 million dollars per year to counter the effects of water pollution.

Air pollution directly impacts human health and the environment in a negative way because

air plays a big role in our ecosystem likewise it can also pose a threat to other ecosystems in the

Philippines. According to Engineer Tejada, even though there is a law on the protection of the air

quality namely the Clean Air Act of 1999, people should still be concerned since it greatly affects

human health and the atmosphere. It causes respiratory problems like decreased lung functions,

lung cancer, and irritation of the eyes and throat. People suffering from asthma and

cardiopulmonary diseases, the children, and the elderly are most likely at high risk. As stated, one

in four deaths in the Philippines are caused by air pollution. It also affects the ecosystem since it

may cause a decrease in the agricultural yield due to acid rain formed out of nitrogen dioxide (NO2)

and sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the atmosphere. Furthermore, chemical pollutants from vehicle

emissions, forest fires, burn and slash, and cigarette smokes can also contribute to climate change.

Recommended Solutions

The land, water, and air pollution in the Philippines can be solved through the lens of

Durkheim’s Structural Functionalism and Rosseau’s Social Contract. On the aspect of Structural

Functionalism, if all sectors work together in doing actions that would contribute to the betterment

of the state of the environment. If the companies that produces consumer goods make ways like

allowing retail on their products wherein a consumer would bring their own containers like they

did way back before the 1970s before single-use sachets were utilized. If they lessen their

generation of plastic, it would make a large difference since the country’s total number of waste

are mainly from these single-use sachets. Moreover, the government should assert more efforts in
implementing laws that would protect the environment. They should provide more funds for

building more monitoring stations and effective waste management in all parts of the country.

They should be strict on their implemented laws and fine everyone who violates it just like the

country Singapore. Transportation vehicles should be efficient and maintained so that the exhaust

gas would be filtered and less harmful compared to old vehicles’ carbon emission. Health sectors

should make more actions that would promote the health of all Filipinos by raising awareness and

showing everyone the detriments of pollution or by initiating a movement wherein the citizens

could join and participate in seminars and in activities like cleaning the environment. Families

should teach their children about proper waste management and disposal while they are still young.

They should teach them how to maintain the cleanliness of the environment so that the world

would be cleaner in the next generations.

Not only the sectors should do their part but also the remaining citizens of the Philippines.

In the aspect of Social Contract, everyone should do their part by simple acts like using less

plastics, ensuring the cleanliness of their environment, disposing and segregating wastes properly,

composting of organic matter, and other environmental-friendly actions. In short, they should

simply do what is right and follow the laws implemented by the government. If they know that

their acts would be detrimental to the society and the environment, they should avoid it to lessen

the population index of their country.

 References

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