Green orgs gather to strengthen

support for EPR bill

Press release - November 6, 2015

Manila - Greenpeace Philippines, Ecowaste Coalition, and Medicins Du Monde (MDM) bring
together various civil society groups to strengthen the civil society push on the Extended
Producers Responsibility (EPR) Bill on electronic waste (e-waste).
EPR[1] is a policy principle to promote total life cycle environmental improvements of product systems
by extending the responsibilities of the manufacturer of the product to various parts of the products
life cycle, and especially to the take-back, recovery and final disposal of the product. E-waste are
electronic products such as mobile phones, computers, television sets, and other electronic appliances
and equipment that have become unwanted, non-working or obsolete[2], and have reached the end of
their useful life.
Greenpeace believes that a policy on EPR is urgently needed in the Philippines to tackle this
unprecedented tsunami of e-waste, especially now that technology advances at a very fast rate, and
electronic products are becoming obsolete and not useful in a few years. Such a policy addresses both
waste and pollution problems and makes consumption both more economically and environmentally
sustainable.
We need a strong and united civil society to push for the passage of the EPR bill to protect the
environment and its inhabitants from pollution brought about by the proliferation of e-waste, said
Abigail Aguilar, Toxics Campaigner of Greenpeace Philippines. The bill will ultimately put the burden of
controlling and disposing the increasing number of e-waste to its producers the big companies who
have the capacity to treat and properly dispose their discarded or end-of-life products. When
producers face the physical burden of recycling or taking back their products, they are now compelled
to design much more sustainable, less toxic, easily recyclable electronics. EPR encourages the
producers to then design their products with recycling as an end goal or perhaps create products that
simply last longer.
E-waste has been considered the fastest rising toxic waste stream. A study released by the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) last May 2015 stated that the electronic industry produces
up to 41 million tonnes of e-waste each year, up to 90 percent of which is illegally traded or dumped in
developing countries.
The growing e-waste crisis is creating even more problems than what the Philippines can
handle. Hazardous materials create even more toxic waste and health impacts, especially for the
informal laborers and waste pickers, communities who are the most exposed to heavy metals such as
lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium, halogenated substances including brominated flame-retardants,
and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
We believe in the importance of advocating for the promotion of informal workers rights. The EPR bill
acknowledges the contribution of the informal sector to the management of e-waste. This recognition
will promote workers rights such as safe work practices, will contribute to reduce the exposure to
toxicants contained into electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) of informal e-waste dismantlers and
their families, and therefore to protect their health. By addressing the responsibilities to reduce

toxicity and waste, the EPR bill promotes the protection of the environment, which is one determinant
of global health, said Elena Vicario, General Coordinator of MDM.
Over the years, efforts to deal with e-waste legislation have been unsuccessful. The Philippines is a
signatory to the 1989 Basel Convention, but not to the Basel Ban Amendment, which bans all exports
of hazardous wastes from developed countries to all other countries for any reason. This will allow
import of e-waste for processing. Philippine NGOs has been lobbying for the ratification on the Basel
Ban Amendment.
Currently, the DENR has initiated the drafting of the Guidelines On The Environmentally Sound
Management (ESM) Of Waste Electrical And Electronic Equipment (WEEE) which organizations like
Greenpeace, Ecowaste Coalition, and MDM have welcomed and support.
With EPR, we hope to bring about a design revolution that will cut, if not eliminate, hazardous
substances in electronic and electrical products and reduce the hazards these products pose during
manufacturing, recycling and disposal. By designing toxics out of e-products, we minimize
occupational exposure to dangerous pollutants, especially among factory workers and recyclers, said
Thony Dizon, Coordinator of EcoWaste Coalition's Project Protect.
For more information, please contact:
Abigail Aguilar
Toxics Campaigner, Greenpeace Philippines
Email: abigail.aguilar@greenpeace.org Mobile: 0917-8106693
Angelica Carballo-Pago
Media Campaigner, Greenpeace Philippines
Email: apago@greenpeace.org Mobile: 0998-9595785
Notes to the Editor:
[1] http://www.greenpeace.org/international/PageFiles/24472/epr.pdf
[2] Obsolescence refers to a product that is no longer working needed or wanted even if it is still in
good working condition and generally occurs when a new model/product has been created to replace
an older version.

http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/ph/press/releases/Green-orgs-gather-tostrengthen-support-for-EPR-bill/