Fresh Action Plan Launched to Fight Mounting Plastic Waste

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The mounting plastic waste problem poses major challenges in the Philippines. The country generates approximately 2.7 million metric tons of plastic waste every year, with majority in the form of non-recyclable single-use plastic sachets. As per World Bank estimates, the country consumes nearly 163 million single-use plastic sachets every single day.

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In addition to the domestically generated plastic waste, the country is being flooded with legal plastic waste imported from other countries, mainly from the U.S., South Korea and Hong Kong. For instance, around 12,000 metric tons of plastic waste was imported in 2019, with the US accounting for more than half of them. Meantime, no real estimates exist for illegally imported plastic waste.

The studies conducted by various agencies indicate that only 10-15% of the plastic waste is recycled in the Philippines, with the rest ending up in landfills.

The government has so far introduced a series strategy roadmaps aligned with the Republic Act 9003. However it has failed to fully implement and enforce these laws. The latest action plan titled the Philippine Action Plan for Sustainable Consumption and Production (PAP4SCP) places more emphasis on private-sector involvement in waste reduction efforts by the authorities.