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cenSEI
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CONTENTS BUSINESS NATION WORLD TECHNOLOGY
BUSINESS
Plastic Bags Ban:
An Update
By Victoria Fritz
STRATEGY POINTS
A spreading initiative among local government
units to reduce or ban the use of plastic
bags and styrofoam containers, along with
pending bills in the Senate and House of
Representatives to regulate them, have
prompted the plastic-bag manufacturers to go
on a public-relations offensive
August 2011, The CenSEI Report
reported that a number of local
government units had instituted restrictions
on the use of plastic bags and polystyrene
(Styrofoam) containers, including
MunLIngIupu us LIe hrsL cILy to enact such
restrictions in Metro Manila.
At the time of that report, other towns and
cities implementing their own restrictions
included: Pasig City; Batangas City;
Carmona and Imus in Cavite; Sta. Barbara
in Iloilo; Bian and Los Banos in Laguna;
Burgos in Pangasinan; Lucban and Infanta
in Quezon, and; Antipolo City in Rizal.
Various towns in Nueva Ecija signed a
resolution that would ban the use of plastic
bags, and promised to convene their
respective municipal councils to pass local
ordinances in keeping with the resolution.
Subsequently, more areas have followed
suit: Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro
in January completely banned the use
of plastic bags, after banning their use
from Friday to Sunday in 2011. The order
came after the city government observed
that most plastic bags used by consumers
eventually ended up in waterways, parks,
beaches and streets.
In an April 1 commentary by Sonia
Mendoza of the Mother Earth Foundation,
published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer,
it was reported that other cities and
municipalities have enacted ordinances to
reduce or prohibit the use of plastic bags,
including: the cities of Las Pias, Makati,
and Pasay in Metro Manila; Calamba City,
Calauan, Luisiana, Paete, Kalayaan, and
Sta. Cruz in Laguna; Bacolod City in Negros
Occidental; Burgos in Pangasinan, and;
Odiongan in Romblon.
More areas act to reduce or
ban the use of plastic bags
and polystyrene containers
Augu
repo
government
on the use o
(Styrofoam
MunLIngIup
restrictions
At the time
cities imple
included: Pa
Carmona an
in Iloilo; Bi
Burgos in Pa
in Quezon,
Various town
resolution t
In
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:NKcenSEI8KVUXZ - May 14-20, 2012
She also reported that Subic Bay Freeport
is the latest addition to the list of places
considering reducing or banning the use of
plastic bags and Styrofoam containers.
Other places instituting similar restrictions
include the province of Bulacan, and the
city of Santa Rosa in Laguna.
Meanwhile, Quezon City recently passed
an ordinance banning the use of plastic
bags in its City Hall and other government
establishments, and heavily promoting
the use of reusable/recyclable bags in the
private establishments.
And in January this year, the Metro
Manila Development Authority said it
expecLs uII 1; IocuI governmenLs In LIe
region to implement bans on plastic bags
by 2013, as reported on the Interaksyon
news portal of TV5.
Pending legislation. In August last year,
the House approved House Bill 4840,
regulating the use of plastic bags. This bill
does not ban plastic bags, but encourages
collection and recycling, calling to mind
the problems involved in recycling earlier
mentioned. However, it calls for the
gradual phase-out of non-biodegradable
plastic bags within three years of effectivity
of the measure.
The Senate has two proposed versions.
The Censei Report piece in August
menLIons LIIs bIII hIed by SenuLor
Loren Legarda in April 2011. Senate
BIII z;q (LIe ToLuI PIusLIc Bun AcL oI
2011), which if passed, will prohibit
the use of non-biodegradable plastic
bags by supermarkets, groceries, public
markets, restaurants, fast food chains,
department and retail stores, and other
similarestablishments, with corresponding
penalties for violators.
The other version, proposed by Sen.
Miriam Santiago, is Senate Bill 3001,
which will also be called the Total Plastic
Bag Ban Act of 2011, bans plastic carrier
bags of all types, making no distinction
between biodegradable and non-
biodegradable plastic bags. This more
encompassing law enjoys the support of
environmental groups such as the Eco-
Waste Coalition.
Plastics industry goes on counter-
offensive. Since then, the plastics
manufacturing industry has gone on
a public relations counter-offensive,
mounting a media campaign to inform
the public of what it considers to be the
advantages of plastic bags.
The Philippines Plastics Industry
Association (PPIA), through its
spokesperson Crispian Lao, said that
plastic is not the problem, as related in the
May 8 Philippine Daily Inquirer opinion
column of Rina Jimenez David. Lao said
a ban on plastics is short-sighted and
impractical. The PPIA itself had said the
same thing in an April 1 column under its
own name, also published in the Inquirer.
or exumpIe, wuxed curLons used Ior
food would take just as long to degrade
us u SLyroIoum conLuIner, sInce LIe wux
lining needs to be separated from the
cardboard. He also claimed that plain
paper does not degrade that easily, since
paper bags have been found intact in
decudes-oId IundhIIs. or Iood puckugIng,
plastic is safer, Lao added.
Plastic bags ban: An update
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