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Jasmine Yiu

Professor Roce Jane Limoso

English 12

23 February 2015

“Plastic Bags: How do Filipinos deal with it? ”

In the Philippines, plastic bags have been a daily produce that are used by customers even

during this day and time. Many businesses make this product because so many enterprises such

as Rustan’s, Unimart have used this plastic bag to the consumers since it has been found to be

more durable compared to any other material present in the industry such as paper. It has been

designed to be lightweight and easy to bring around. Given these conditions, the plastic bag

became intensely popular in the stores in the Philippines and can be used for a variety of

purposes due to its low costs. (Canadian Plastics Industry Association)

However, these bags destroy the natural environment of the country. Plastic bags are

made from petroleum goods, which cannot be produced readily in the country. It is also a highly

toxic chemical that manufacture bags that are not even healthy in nature. (Clapp and Swanston

317-318) In the Philippines, Senator Legarda cited from a study that around 500 Billion to 1

trillion plastic bags have been used every year and this had an effect not only on the ecosystem

of the animals but also on the environment as a whole. (Manila Bulletin) With these many plastic

bags being distributed in the Philippines, imagine how many of these bags are properly recycled

by Filipinos. Most of the time, these citizens throw these bags in the most convenient time,

which is most often in rivers and streams. In Quezon City, they implemented the Plastic Ban

policy requiring all business establishments to insert an environmental fee for each plastic bag.

Though this is so, a total plastic ban will not be implemented in the city. The plastic bags that
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can be allowed are those that are above 15mm in thickness, which lacks in durability.

(“PlasticBan”)

In our situation, there are still plastics that are used in the city and though it may not be as

harmful as what it could have been, these plastic bags still harm the environment of the country.

An example of this is the biodegradable plastics that are readily available in the supermarkets.

They can be dissolved within a few months under favorable environmental conditions. But

looking at our situation right now, do you think that our waters are under favorable conditions?

(Ban on plastics: How effective?”) If we look at the condition of Pasig River, there are a number

of water hyacinths present in it. This indicates that the plant has multiplied and has been

destroying the natural environment because of its ability to drain oxygen from bodies of water. It

is surely impossible to believe that we will be able to invest on these biodegradable plastics

given our water conditions as of the moment. Although plastics can be reused for future purposes

(shopping, take-out meals) and are more durable compared to other alternatives such as paper,

plastics are one of the causes of flooding, pollution, global warming thus preventing the natural

environment from having no wastes.

If we continue to use plastic bags, there will be no place for Filipinos to dump their

wastes anymore. Plastic bags, unlike other types of material take such a long time to decompose.

It takes 15-1000 years for it to totally break down and it will affect the pollution of the

Philippines as a whole. When these materials will be present in the landfills for a number of

years, where will the other garbage go?

The Metro Manila Development Authority said that the city dumps 3,000 cubic meters

(600 trucks) of trash in the rivers, drainages in the roads. (Philippine Star) Yet, it is proven that

the drainage system in the Philippines is not as effective as those in developed countries. It is
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poorly designed, not properly executed that leads many of our roads, rivers flooded in numerous

areas in the country. Even if there is evidence that plastic bags cause only a small part of the

pollution in the areas, we should set a good example to the community by establishing this

Plastic Ban Law. If there is this kind of law present, people will be more conscious of their litter

and there will be less flooding in the Philippines. Many of our Filipinos follow by example and if

we don’t establish a law that will implement the prohibition of plastic bags, then there will be no

progress in the country.

It is hard to buy plastic bags when the people are already having a hard time coping with

their basic needs. Statistically speaking, the poverty in the Philippines still remained one of the

highest in Asia. In 2014, the poverty rate in the Philippines was 25.2%. (Inquirer.net) Even

though there was a boost in economic growth during the year in the Aquino Administration, they

still haven’t reached its goal in eradicating the country’s state of poverty.

Thus, the passing of the Plastic Ban Law will give way to the increased cost of buying

plastic bags. In this way, people will be more careful of what to buy when in the supermarket.

Thus, it will reduce the quantity of these plastic bags. (Turner and Sutton 34) It also decreases

the extra cost that can be used for other important purposes in life such as paying your electricity

costs, rent income. How much could we have saved from using a recycling bag when going to

the supermarket? Also, we will hit 2 birds in 1 stone. If we continue to implement this law, the

Filipinos will have more pressing matters to delve into such as their expenditures on their

children’s education. Not only do we lessen the poverty in the Philippines but we also get to

eradicate the illiteracy in the country as well.

Plastic bags are made from petroleum goods, which are not readily available. Every day,

the Philippines need 300,000 barrels of oil. It constitutes 35% of the energy power and 6.42% of
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natural gas. The rest comes from coal, geothermal, and many more. (Petroleum Association of

the Philippines) According to U.S. statistics, 12 million barrels of oil are used to make 100

billion plastic bags. (Clapp and Swanston 317-318) This resource is necessary for the country to

function. It is the core of the progress of the country and by using this important supply on a

material that can be given another alternative; it will be a waste for many of our Filipinos. In this

day and age, we are dependent on technology and since 35% of petroleum constitutes energy

power, it will pose a huge problem when there is no more resource of this. How will employees

contact fellow people from abroad to discuss about trade relations? How can using plastic bags

even help us in anyway? This material can only be used to convert into another plastic bag. By

knowing this, there can be no way that it can help our country given the context that plastic bags

use up a valuable resource of ours.

If we do not have any more petroleum, we have no choice but to import from other

countries. Our expenditures will skyrocket and will affect the economy of the Philippines, in a

negative way. All that leads to the making of the plastic bag is not beneficial on the country’s

circumstances. We not only lessen the petroleum resource of the country but also lessen its

income as well. There is no satisfactory result on any of this.

Although the above statements are true, there are a few arguments why the Plastic ban

law is argued among the masses in the Philippines. First of all, plastic bags occupy less than 1%

of the overall waste in the landfills. The material is designed to be lightweight and thus easy to

bring around. (6) It is more or less effortless for the consumers to carry their shopping bags since

they are so convenient; it also has a handle to hold onto.

It has been studied that in the Local Environmental Quality Survey 2001-2, plastic bags

were only found in 5% of the 50 sq. meter space while smoking debris are found in 82% of the
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area. The industry of plastics asserts the problem of littering as a social problem and give

importance to this drawback as not biased to only plastics to be blamed. The tax imposed on

plastic bags will not indicate a big difference on the behavior of the people. There should first be

a strict implementation on the littering of the citizens before they raise the taxes of the following

products. (British Plastics Federation)

It is not the plastic bags we should blame. They only contribute a small part of the

pollution in the country. We should blame the lack of discipline that is not visible in our society

because of the lack of laws enforcing this problem.

Let us first look at the perspective of the traffic scheme and the citizens’ behavior

towards the MMDA. When we see an officer in the highway, it will be apparent that an average

Filipino will slow down because he is kept under surveillance by the MMDA cop. He will make

sure that he is abiding by the rules of the speed limit in order to not get caught by the police. But

when he reaches a certain distance from the officer, he will speed up again since the Filipino is

not being kept watch anymore by the MMDA officer. Compared to the discipline of other

countries like America, they do not need to be observed because of the discipline that they

already have towards the community.

This kind of behavior that we have towards our country is the very reason why we do not

improve in terms of economic progress and etc. We do not have the discipline like the

Americans, Singaporeans, and other developed countries.

Other than that, most of the plastics used are biodegradable plastic. Polylactide (PLA),

starch and cellulose are one of the biodegradable polymers in biodegradable plastic bags. One of

the cheapest yet commonly used material is the cellulose. In creating the plastic material, the

cellulose is modified by acetylation. This cellulose film occupies the paper and plastic films.
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Thus, this material is advantageous to the environment as it decomposes into the soil in 4

months. (Izdebska) These biodegradable plastic bags are used to break down in a year or two

compared to ordinary plastic bags that break down to a hundred years. One of the newest

technologies of this product is the oxy-degradable bag that contains a pro-degradant that reduces

the amount of time to degrade from years to months. (Wong 5-6) With this technology, there will

now be no more problems in terms of discarding this material since it will decompose by itself in

the following months. The real problem about the plastic bag is the degradation of this material.

Now that this problem has been solved, consumers can now use this material with a clear

conscience. They will be able to use this material in terms of its possible advantages (lessening

the burden of bringing an extra bag to the supermarket) to our society. Anyway, many people are

having problems with the banning of plastic bags because of its practicality in our everyday life.

Secondly, plastic bags are not one of the major reasons why the aquatic environment is

being threatened. Ropes, fishing accessories pose even a greater threat to these animals. Turtles

most often get caught up in nets than getting into contact with plastic bags. A photograph of a

turtle eating a plastic bag can only be seen once in a full moon but this picture has been shared

several times. (6)

Fig. 1. A picture of a turtle eating a plastic bag (SavethePlasticBag)

From this information, we still believe that plastic bags pose a big threat to its marine life.

Pictures such as the one above are circulating through the Internet and are used to show

opposition towards this material. The government has foolishly thought this fact is true in its

nature. But where are the statistics? Where is the evidence that shows that plastic bags indeed are

one of the key causes of the destruction of its marine environment?

Fig. 2. A table that shows the illnesses of the following turtles in the years 2011 & 2012

From the figure above, we can see that there is no sign of plastics present in the

conditions of the turtles. It is actually caused by different materials such as fishing accessories

that are not even placed into the spotlight by the environmentalists and other government

officials. They are discriminating the use of plastic bags since it does not do good to the

environment in the first place.

Also, using the words “plastic bags” and “plastic debris” interchangeably is also one of

the reasons why the plastic bags are commonly misinterpreted. The latter shows a variety of

plastic materials such as plastic bottles, plastic cups, and etc. that may be one of the causes of the

deaths of a number of marine animals but these words cannot mean the same. Environmentalists

believe that plastic debris are plastic bags, which cause a number of claims against this material.

Thus, it is better if the arguments against plastic bags are studied even further before making

accusations. It will give everyone an easier time figuring out which is the more accurate claim.

I do believe that a countrywide ban would be a great advantage to us Filipinos. The

people in the Philippines do not have the sufficient discipline necessary to advocate the use of

plastics as of the moment. They cannot even follow traffic rules, what more the throwing of

plastics. Plastics namely have its physical characteristics (easy to bring around, lightweight),

which distinguish its superior quality compared to other alternatives such as paper and recycled

Eco bags. The consumer will also have the convenience of using plastic bags in the respective

stores they buy rather than bringing their own bag. But the disadvantages out rule that of the

contrary in the perspective of the Philippines. Not only is this material not good to the

environment but also the process of making this consumes an essential resource, petroleum that

is necessary in establishing power in our country. The Philippines is naturally dependent in oil

reserves that we need to conserve this resource and use it wisely as a citizen of this country.

Not many people believe that the act of throwing plastic bags in the waters of the

Philippines does a great deal on the natural environment. Actually, Filipinos use this “Mamaya

na iyan” often thinking that they can make up for what they’ve done in the past. They believe

that it is possible to throw their garbage later when they have the time to do so. But in the end, all

this garbage builds up in the waters and these violators cannot mend it anymore. Thus, it is
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necessary to point out the essential reasons why we must establish this law and it is because

Filipinos need this in order to have a more stable environment. We should be able to give the

Filipinos a reason to throw their trash in the proper garbage. We need to take care of our

surroundings and the best way to do this is to initiate a set-up that cannot be violated by the ever-

present inflexible Filipinos.

Works Cited

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Clap, J., & Swanston, L. (2009). Doing away with plastic shopping bags: International patterns

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"Environmental Pollution: The Harmful Effects of Plastic Bags." Buzzle. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.

<http://www.buzzle.com/articles/environmental-pollution-the-harmful-effects-of-plastic-

bags.html>.

"Frequently Asked Questions." Petroleum Association of the Philippines. Petroleum Association

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2013>.

Lee, B., Ellenbecker, M., & Moure-Eraso, R. (2001). Analyses of the recycling potential of

medical plastic wastes. In Waste Management (2002 ed., Vol. 22, pp. 461-470).

Massachusetts: Pergamon.

Plastic Bags pose special problems. (2010). In Understanding Environmental Pollution(3rd ed.,

p. 345). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

"Plastic Bag Tax." British Plastics Federation. British Plastics Federation. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.

<http://www.bpf.co.uk/Press/Plastic_Bag_Tax.aspx>.

Plastic Ban in the Philippines: Prohibitions and Clarifications. (n.d.). Retrieved December 4,

2014.
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"Poverty Rate Cut to 16.6% by 2015." Office of the President of the Philippines. Office of the

President of the Philippines. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.

<http://president.gov.ph/daang_matuwid/poverty-rate-cut-to-16-6-by-2015/>.

Remo, Michelle. "PH to Miss 2015 Poverty-reduction Goal." Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Philippine Daily Inquirer, 26 Feb. 2014. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.

<http://business.inquirer.net/164861/ph-to-miss-2015-poverty-reduction-goal>.

Rujnic-Sokele, M., & Baric, G. (2014). Life cycle of Polyethylene Bag. ANNALS of Faculty

Engineering Hunedoara- International Journal of Engineering, 12, 1-9.

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1-65. Retrieved December 4, 2014, from

http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1082&context=socssp

Wong, J. (n.d.). Plastic Bags and a Look at Alternatives. 1-15. Retrieved December 4, 2014,

from https://circle.ubc.ca/bitstream/id/121262/Wong_Jason_GEOG_419_2011.pdf
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