The amount of solid waste generated by Filipinos went up by 275 percent to 60,000 metric tons this year, compared to 16,000MT in 2016. Of the 60,000MT of solid waste, plastic accounted for 30 to 40 percent, Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones said on Monday, which also happened to be World Environment Day.
Environment Secretary Antonio Yulo Loyzaga, who led the celebration, lamented that the country was not winning the war against single use plastics. “There’s a social issue attached to it and if you cannot address the social issue, we will not be able to address the use of single use plastics,” she said, calling on large scale enterprises using plastic packaging to be responsible in looking for a sustainable replacement.
Under the Extended Producer Responsibility Act which lapsed into law last year, big companies should implement policies on the proper management of plastic packaging waste. However, only 600 out of 4,000 firms have taken steps to comply with the law.
To address the garbage problem, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is looking into prioritizing programs for fast moving consumer goods companies that are large generators of plastics. It has also taken steps to ramp up the country’s waste management program with the National Solid Waste Management Commission’s approval of the 100-year solid waste management plans (SWMP) submitted by cities and municipalities, where 79 percent have approved SWMPs but implementation is still sorely wanting.
State auditors have noted that the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 has failed to “progressively achieve its goal,” as the annual solid waste generation in the country has steadily increased.
On the other hand, international advocacy organization Oceana said it was high time the government banned single use plastics, citing recent studies confirmed the presence of microplastics in the environment.
The continued rise in the sheer volume of solid and plastic waste our country generates points to our failure to act accordingly and explains why the Philippines is among the top countries in the world when it comes to generating plastic waste. The DENR, and local government units can all proclaim their fervent desire to address this still growing problem, but until decisive actions are taken to reduce the plastic packaging we produce and discard, those words do not stand a chance against the plastic scourge.*
