The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is aiming to reduce plastic pollution in the country by 85 percent by the year 2040, as part of its goals under the Philippine National Plastic Action Roadmap launched last week.

A briefer by the National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP), a multistakeholder platform chaired by the DENR, identifies the Philippines as “a rapidly urbanizing nation with a growing population [that] is grappling with a mounting waste crisis.”

It added: “The country generates 61,000 metric tons of waste per day, 12 to 24 percent of which are plastic waste. Much of this plastic waste ends up in landfills, dumps and the environment, exacerbating climate and disaster risks, including frequent flooding.”

With the launching of the roadmap on Sept. 25, NPAP said it aims to provide a “common strategic and implementation framework for moving toward a circular, inclusive, resilient and accountable plastics system by 2040.”

“Through this road map, the Philippines aims to reduce plastic pollution by 85 percent by 2040,” Environment Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna said in his keynote speech. “Achieving this requires sustained action across planning cycles and administrations with clear milestones, measurable progress and accountability.”

Targeted outcomes

The DENR and its partners aim to accomplish several “outcomes” under their road map. The first priority is to have plastic pollution “prevented at source” by reducing “avoidable and unnecessary plastic use” and promoting “innovative, circular and sustainable product and packaging design.”

The second goal is to have better “segregation, collection, recovery, recycling and safe residuals management systems,” which the DENR aims to achieve by establishing materials recovery facilities and accelerating the closure of open dumps, among other strategies.

The third goal is to reduce plastic leakage into communities, drainage systems, rivers, lakes and other marine environments by identifying the sources and intercepting the accumulated plastic pollution.

The road map also seeks to establish “clear and consistent rules” that will govern the importation and exportation of plastic waste. In addition, it aims to develop markets where there is demand for products made from or using recovered plastics as part of its materials.

Producers and businesses would be made more responsible for the plastic they produce while environmentally conscious practices, such as waste segregation and recycling, would be embedded in the everyday behavior of Filipinos.

No funding yet

The country should have a “just, gender-responsive and socially inclusive” plastics system transition, which also seeks to achieve a circular economy through actions backed by evidence and data.

Lastly, the road map aims to achieve policy coherence, with institutions able to conduct coordinated implementation.

“By 2040, our progress should be evident in healthier rivers and seas, cleaner and more resilient communities, efficient and productive resource use, and the Filipino people equitably sharing the benefits of a truly circular economy through better social services and secure livelihoods,” said Cuna.

The DENR said funding for the implementation of the road map has yet to be finalized.

But the road map was developed through a partnership between the government, represented by the DENR, and the World Economic Forum, with support from the United Kingdom and Canada as well as the private sector through Coca-Cola Foundation.

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