The 53rd celebration of World Environment Day (WED) was held on June 5 last week. I had the pleasure of commemorating this event in Boracay Island while attending the Philippine Councilors’ League quarterly seminar. The world-famous island has all the modern conveniences of a city but due to strict enforcement of environmental laws, it has maintained its natural beauty. This is precisely the message of WED - development without sacrificing the environment.
Since 1973, WED has been commemorated annually. It is the biggest international day for the environment. It was started in 1972 by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. It was also on June 5 that the UNGA created the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN’s agency in charge of environmental affairs, who leads the yearly WED celebration.
In the Philippines, June is declared environment month by virtue of Proclamation No. 237 signed by President Corazon C. Aquino in 1988. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) itself was organized into what it is today on June 10, 1987.
The theme for this year’s WED is ‘Beat plastic pollution’. According to UNEP, more than 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced every year worldwide, half of which is designed to be used only once. Of that, less than 10 per cent is recycled. An estimated 11 million tonnes end up in lakes, rivers and seas annually.
When plastic disintegrates, it becomes microplastics. These tiny plastic particles measuring up to 5mm in diameter find their way into food, water and air. It is estimated that each person on the planet consumes more than 50,000 plastic particles per year, and many more if inhalation is considered.
Discarded or burnt single-use plastic harms human health and biodiversity and pollutes every ecosystem from mountain tops to the ocean floor. Marine animals eat plastic, mistaking it for food. These are just some of the detrimental effects of plastic pollution in the environment.
To address the global plastic pollution problem, a plastic treaty was proposed by the UN. In March 2022, at the resumed fifth session of the UN Environment Assembly, a resolution was adopted to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution. An Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to develop "the instrument," was formed.
The INC began its work during the second half of 2022, with the goal of completing the negotiations by the end of 2024. Five sessions were held. The last one was in Busan, Republic of Korea on November 25 to December 01, 2024. However, no final agreement was reached. A follow-up session is scheduled to take place this August 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland.
Meanwhile, every country should address plastic pollution in their territory. The Philippines for its part has Republic Act 11898, or the Extended Producers Responsibility Act of 2022. This law mandates big companies to reduce their plastic footprint.