JV Ejercito backs moves to ban single use plastics
July 09, 2022
Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito on
Saturday said the Philippines should consider banning single use plastics in an
effort to reduce the worsening plastic pollution in the country and protect the
environment.
In an interview, Ejercito said the country
should take its cue from India, which banned single use plastics starting this
month.
“Dapat seryosohin na talaga natin. Dati, pag
environmental issue, parang di tayo interesado. Sa tingin ko, unang una, pag
i-ban natin ang single use plastic, malaki ang maitutulong nun. Halimbawa, yung
bottled water, straw, yung mga single use, sayang,” he said.
A 2015 study found that the Philippines ranked
third among the world’s top sources of plastic garbage leaking into oceans.
Almost a quarter of the 2.7 million metric tons of plastic generated in the
country flows straight to the waters surrounding the archipelago.
On July 28, 2021, the House of Representatives
approved on final reading the Single-use Plastic Products Regulation Bill,
which sought to regulate the production, importation, sale, distribution,
provision, use, recovery, collection, recycling, and disposal of single-use
plastic products.
Various environmental groups, such as
Greenpeace Philippines and the EcoWaste Coalition, have urged the Senate to
pass a similar measure but to no avail.
The lawmaker said imposing a ban on single use
plastics in the country will entail some adjustments on the part of Filipino
consumers, most of whom are accustomed to buying their basic necessities in
small amounts.
“Tingin ko, tayong mga Pilipino, mahilig tayo sa
tingi-tingi. Yung purchasing power natin kasi, pang-raos lang (sa araw-araw),”
Ejercito said.
