The Department of Natural Resources, through its National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP) program, has launched a working group to look into the recycling of flexible plastics to extend its life cycle and prevent it from clogging landfills or polluting the environment.
According to the European Environment Agency, flexible plastics are “plastics that can be scrunched easily in your hand,” and these are mainly used in packaging, building and construction, as well as agriculture.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which serves as the NPAP secretariat, said that flexible plastics is a “primary component” of plastic pollution and “remain a critical challenge for the Philippines.”
Citing a 2021 World Bank study, the UNDP pointed out that the country uses an estimated 163 million sachets daily, which is linked to its “rapid urbanization and large low-income population.”
The same study also found that around $790 million to $890 million of potential material value from recyclable plastics is lost to the local economy each year due to several structural challenges. These include high logistics and electricity costs, intense competition from the informal recycling industry, and the inability of small and medium enterprises to meet the demands of multinational buyers when it comes to recycled plastic.
The use of “heavy, low value, and hard to recycle,” flexible packaging which “represents 61 percent of the plastic packaging units entering the Philippine market,” have also caused a downward pressure in the country’s collected-for-recycling rates.
“Plastic waste has a low recycling rate with waste management infrastructure lacking. Existing recycling centers typically process rigid plastics, which can be exchanged for cash and other incentives,” the UNDP said. “Moreover, food grade plastic recycling is limited. As a result, plastic wastes, particularly flexible plastics, may end up in landfills or in the environment,” it added.
The newly established working group hopes to explore innovative recycling technologies and infrastructure for flexible plastics, including food grade plastic recycling. A key focus of the group will be “fostering cross-sector collaboration” to promote a circular economy for flexible plastics.
In a country where plastic waste has become a major problem, a lot of work has to be done in promoting and furthering a circular economy that can reduce the amount of unnecessary waste that will ultimately destroy our environment if we don’t do anything about it now.*
