Villar eyes law making manufacturers responsible for plastic products

Sen. Cynthia Villar has called for the committee hearing on the bill that will mandate manufacturers to be responsible for the management of their plastic products.

Senate Bill No. 1331 or the Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR) Act of 2020 authored by Villar, seeks to institutionalize the practice of EPR in waste management. It also amends the 20-year-old Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act.

"This measure makes sure that the responsibility for the entire life cycle of plastic products rests on the manufacturers. It will mandate manufacturers to recover plastic wastes from their products as a mechanism towards achieving an efficient solid waste management," Villar said.

Villar, chair of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, said there are indications that the industry would welcome the EPR approach, citing the declaration signed last month by the members of the Philippine Alliance for Recycling and Materials Sustainability (PARMS) to engage in activities that are in harmony with EPR.

PARMS, a multi-stakeholder coalition of corporations mostly from the fast-moving consumer goods sector, retailers, and industry groups, committed to reduce waste generation through packaging redesign and the voluntary withdrawal of non-recyclable products and packaging materials . the group also committed to recover waste by embarking on waste collection across communities; and to recycle wastes by increasing application for recycled materials and strengthening investments in the recycling industry.

The hearing which will be held today, February 18, also includes the various bills filed on the ban and regulation on single-use plastics.

"The fact that the Philippines continues to be the third largest producer of plastic waste that made its way to our oceans, we need to put in place reforms bold enough to address our very serious plastic problem," Villar said.

The Nacionalista Party senator authored Senate Bill 333 or the Single-Use Plastic Product Regulation Act, which seeks to regulate the manufacturing, importation, and single-use of plastic products.

Also under the bill, the issuance of the single-use plastics by food establishments, stores, markets, and retailers will be prohibited. Consumers will also be diverted to use reusable materials and manufacturers will be mandated to collect, recycle and dispose of single-use plastics manufactured and/or in circulation in the general market. Importation of single-use plastics will no longer be allowed.