GREENPEACE welcomes the announcement that President Rodrigo Duterte is considering a nationwide ban on single-use plastics. This is a long delayed pronouncement which we trust will be put into action and will not remain a mere statement.

The solution to the scourge of single-use plastics is to avoid its manufacture. As a first step, the President needs to certify as priority a strong national single-use plastic ban bill, which should aim for a drastic reduction of the manufacture of single-use plastic products and packaging, and their eventual elimination from the market.

Importantly, this ban must include the phaseout of sachet packaging, direct companies to redesign products and packaging, and give incentives to reuse, refill and other alternative delivery systems.

Finally, the ban should not include false solutions such as materials substitution to paper or bioplastics, lightweighting of packaging, and chemical recycling, among others.

Abigail Aguilar

Regional Campaign Coordinator at Greenpeace Southeast Asia