Philippines Proposes Fees for Plastic Bag Use
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New legislative measures are being put forward in the Philippines, with the aim of changing the country’s usage of disposable plastics. Specifically, representative Al Francis Bichara’s House Bill 4134, if enacted, would slap a P2.50 tariff on disposable grocery bags, hopefully putting them out of commission altogether.
“While we find P2.50 disproportionate to the environmental and climate impacts of plastic bags, we welcome the proposed levy as this will regulate the unrestrained use of plastic bags and encourage consumers to switch to reusable bags and containers,” Anne Larracas of the EcoWaste Coalition’s Task Force on Plastics said
The plastic bag levies, as proposed by HB 4134, will accrue to the “Environmental Protection Support Fund” that will, among others, finance pollution prevention and reduction projects.
“The revenues from the collected levies on plastic bags, we hope, will be used to support ecological solutions to the waste and climate crisis, particularly in setting up community-oriented ecology centers or materials recovery facilities in place of polluting dumpsites and landfills,” Larracas added.
The EcoWaste Coalition reportedly looked to Ireland as inspiration for their legislation, citing their success in imposing fees on their disposable bags years ago (and the subsequent 90% drop in bag litter throughout the country) and hoping for similar results here. Though they admit that legislation will probably be slow, as it has been in most cases, they are displaying extreme optimism about possible outcomes, and not without reason — reports indicate that 76% of garbage found clogging Manila Bay and its shores is made up of synthetic plastics, with plastic bags comprising an overwhelming 51%.
“We know how slow the legislative process is and how vested interests can block progressive legislation. We hope that HB 4134 will be duly debated by the 14th Congress and even made bolder and stronger, with inputs from the civil society and other stakeholders, to effectively curb plastic bag pollution,” the EcoWaste Coalition stated.
Even now, however, while this bill is in progress, the EcoWaste Coalition urges the country’s citizens to consider refusing plastics and switching to reusable bags. Every little bit helps, after all, and the sooner the process is started, the better.
Photo via Flickr
Wednesday, June 18th, 2008 at 9:21 am and is filed under The Daily. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Our legislators who are concerned with the environment are appreciated. It is high time that they dont protect the business of “Plastic Kings”. Filipinos should go back to the days where there are no plastic bags but only reusabale and durable “bayongs” and baskets. Let us love our own lives, the lives of our children and the future generations.