Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 19) — Thinking of going zero-waste but worried of its monetary costs? An environment group said you can do so by just looking at what you already have in your homes.
“Kung magshi-shift tayo sa zero-waste lifestyle, hindi natin kailangan bumili ng bagong gamit or bagong environmentally acceptable products,” EcoWaste Coalition policy advocacy officer Patricia Nicdao told Newsroom Ngayon.
[Translation: If we will shift to zero-waste lifestyle, we do not need to buy new things or new environmentally acceptable products.]
Nicdao explained old items like bags and containers may be repurposed and reused since purchasing new ones will defeat the purpose of eliminating waste.
She noted that the Philippines has a severe “plastic crisis.” Despite some 400 local government units having ordinances on the regulation of single-use plastic, Filipinos still use billions of plastics annually in their daily lives, she said.
She mentioned several alternatives to single-use plastics, some of which are already being used by Filipinos for a very long time like bayongs, fabric bags, water jugs, washable glasses, stainless steel lunchboxes, and reusable bamboo straw.
During this time of the pandemic, the use of plastic products like cutleries, became very prominent especially in food businesses. The advocate said it is safe to also reuse these, according to experts. In effect, this also lessens wastes.
More than the shift, Nicdao said what their group would like to push is to have a circular economy, where citizens will recognize that natural resources are not infinite thus the need to reuse as much as possible.
“We want a change in the system kasi doon talaga natin makikita iyong totoong pag-mitigate ng plastic pollution sa Pilipinas,” she added.
[Translation: We want a change in the system because that is when we can really mitigate plastic pollution in the Philippines.]
The group also urged Congress to pass a comprehensive measure that will ban single-use plastics in the country.
