January 2020: National Zero-Waste Month
Presidential Proclamation no.
760 declaring January as the National Zero Waste Month was signed by President
Benigno S. Aquino on May 15, 2014. This declaration has a purpose to remind
Filipinos and the rest of the country to be mindful of waste generated.
The said proclamation was also
pursuant to the Republic Act (RA) 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management
Act of 2000. One of the highlight provisions of the RA is the proper
segregation, collection, transport, storage, treatment including disposal of
solid waste.
________
These decrees aim to encourage
appropriate management of rubbish due to various crises the country faces in
terms of garbage disposal.
The Philippines is the third-largest contributor to ocean pollution.
The Philippines is known to be
the third-largest ocean pollutant after Indonesia as it produces two million
tons of plastic waste per year. Approximate 800,000 tons of this said waste
goes directly to the ocean.
Daily, the Philippines
generates 43,684 tons of garbage and 4,609 tons of it is plastic waste. Such
plastic dross came majorly from single-use plastics like sachets and those tetra
packs. These product packagings are influenced largely by the country’s penchant
for ‘tingi’ that has become its current market culture.
To recount, there are only 139
operational sanitary landfills in the Philippines. These landfills are
servicing only 308 of the nation’s 1,634 Local Government Units (LGUs). At
least 425 illegal dumpsites are operating in the country; moreover, only 24
percent of the entire nation’s 42,036 villages had its functioning Material
Recovery Facilities (MRFs) – such given capacity or lack thereof are one of the
causes of waste problems and health hazards.
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What we are doing:
We, at Happy Shift, are aware
of the current implications of solid waste to our environment most especially
to our oceans and marine species. In 2019, all our deliveries throughout the
Metro is plastic-free. Our parcels are recycled brown papers and we do not use
plastic bubble wraps, even shredded papers. The latter, while made of recycled
materials cannot be re-used any more.
We also refrain from using
plastic tapes and shifted to using masking tape instead. Masking tapes are made
from thin paper with adhesives. Currently, we are still looking for other and
better ways to keep all purchased items secured without compromising our
clients and the environment.
For orders outside Metro
Manila, we are using cartons or boxes to deliver instead of the usual plastic
parcel. We are in negotiation with our couriers to handle deliveries with extra
care since we are emitting plastics entirely.
We still have a long way to go
in our #plasticfree and #zerowaste journey. We are still improving deliveries
as we do not want soaps to dent and get damaged in transit to our clients.
What we can do more:
We encourage everyone to dispose
of their waste properly. Waste segregation and recycling or upcycling are
highly supported. Let us not stop the yearning to learn more about how we can
live sustainably and how we can further help our environment and our country in
combatting the challenges regarding waste management.
We also believe that businesses
especially huge firms or corporations should take a leap from using and
producing single-use plastics to more sustainable packaging.
Together, we can make a
difference. Let’s continue the #zerowaste journey.
References:
DENR (2014).
January is National Zero-Waste Month: Time to do away with our “Throwaway
Culture”. [Article] Retrieved from http://ncr.denr.gov.ph/index.php/about-us/history/87-regional-articles-default/349-national-zero-waste-month
National
Solid Waste Management Commission (2017). 17th Anniversary of R.A.
9003 and Zero Waste Management Celebration. [Article] Retrieve from http://nswmc.emb.gov.ph/?p=1065
Romulo, R.
(2019, July 5). Philippines: A Leader in Garbage. [News Article] Retrieved from
https://www.philstar.com/business/2019/07/05/1932006/philippines-leader-garbage
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