29 September 2021
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte
Malacañang Complex J.P. Laurel Street San Miguel, Manila
Subject: Request for Immediate Release of List of Non-Environmentally Acceptable Products and Packaging and Include Single-Use Plastics
Dear President Duterte:
Green greetings! We, the undersigned organizations, are working on lasting solutions to end the plastic pollution crisis in the country. Single-use plastic is a problematic material. It is designed to be used once but lasts for decades in our ecosystems. We can see its effects not just in our coastal communities but in urban areas as well, especially during typhoon season. Our county is drowning in plastic waste. The staggering volume of plastic waste in the country has become unmanageable.
It has been twenty years since the passage of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act or RA 9003. However, implementation still falls short. We therefore note the following to include single-use plastics in the list of Non-Environmentally Acceptable Products and Packaging (NEAPP) as mandated by the Act:
Plastic is not just a waste management issue but a climate and health concern as well. Ninety-nine percent (99%) of plastic is made of fossil fuel, and the entire plastic life cycle – from production to disposal – causes high volumes of greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions massively accelerate climate change. Moreover, plastic breaks down into smaller pieces called micro or nano plastics that find their way into the food chain, the water that we drink and, recent studies show, even the air we breathe. These micro-plastics may cause oxidative stress, cytotoxicity, inflammation, or immune reactions, and cause lesions in the respiratory system.
The plastic pollution crisis worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, it has been reported that the average Filipino uses 591 sachets, 174 shopping bags, and 163 labo bags every year. Nationally, this results in almost 17.5 billion pieces shopping bags and 16.5 billion pieces labo bags every year. From July to December 2020, the country generated 362,000 metric tons of waste. This volume is about four times greater than the 88,000 metric tons of waste generated in 2019.
There is strong clamor for a single-use plastic ban from the Filipino people. In a 2020 Social Weather Survey, it was found that 7 out of 10 Filipinos are in favor of banning single use plastics. Moreover, there are, currently, 488 local governments (including Davao City) that already have ordinances regulating single-use plastics. It is worth noting that these local ordinances have contributed to significant decreases in the volume of plastic waste in local communities. Unfortunately, local ordinances are not enough to address the plastic waste crisis. A national uniformed ban on single use plastics is necessary to ensure plastic waste volume reduction across the country. So far, 95 cities, municipalities and provinces passed resolutions urging the National Solid Waste Management Commission to release the list of NEAPP and include single-use plastic.
Our existing environmental laws are powerful, it is powerful enough to end the plastic crisis. RA 9003 established the National Solid Waste Management Commission under the Office of the President by virtue of Section 4 of the Act. RA 9003 prohibits the use, manufacture, distribution, and importation of Non- Environmentally Acceptable Products and Packaging (NEAPP). Its implementing rules and regulations define NEAPP as “unsafe in production, use, post-consumer use, or that produce or release harmful by-products when discarded.” Clearly, single-use plastic falls within this definition. Section 29 of the law states that within one year from the effectivity “the National Solid Waste Management Commission shall, after public notice and hearing, prepare a list of NEAPP that shall be prohibited according to a schedule that shall be prepared by the Commission.” It has been two decades; the Commission is still to release the NEAPP list. This mandate is long overdue.
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