Albay’s ‘Plastic Ban’ campaign starts in June

Albay province will start implementing the ban on the use of plastics ordinance in June that will lead to full enforcement of its provisions by March 2012.

The ban will start with an information and education campaign (IEC).

According to Gov. Joey Salceda, “Plastic ban in Albay will take effect on March 2012 and Board Member Arnold Embestro, who is the chairman of the Committee on Environment, will lead a massive IEC campaign starting June 2011.”

Learning from China, "white pollution" refers to plastic bags. "Bookstores and pharmacies will be forbidden to give out free plastic bags, supermarkets have had to charge for shopping bags since June 1, 2008 when China also banned the production, sale and use of ultra-thin plastic bags, becoming one of only a few nations around the world to take such tough measures,” Salceda said.

Salceda said the Albay version is positively being welcome by his constituents.

One of them, Donnaven Arizapa, a daughter of a sari-sari store operator in this city commented “what my mom does is to reuse plastic bags as container for retailing charcoal, she has been practicing this even before the inception of the ordinance.”

Embestro said Albay in its desire to reduce if not totally eliminate the use of plastic bags as packaging materials, encourages the utilization of alternative packaging materials such as woven native bags (bayong), reusable cloth shopping bags (katsa), paper bags and other similar materials (banana leaves, taro leaves, etc.) and, at the same time, enjoying the promotion of the “MAGDARA nin SADIRiNG KAAGAN Program”(MSKP) (bring your own bag program).

The ordinance aims to lessen plastic pollution and boost environment protection, and in the interest of public health and safety.

Any establishments found violating the provision of this ordinance shall be penalized: first offense - written notice of warning; second offense - P2,000 fine and recommendation for 15 days temporary suspension of business permit; third offense - P3,000 fine and recommendation for 30 days temporary suspension of business permit and fourth offense - recommendation for cancellation of business permit.

Posted in: Plastics