BACOLOD City – This city is mulling to implement a “plastic holiday” or a ban on the use of single-use plastics.
This is in relation to the relaunch of a city ordinance (CO) which regulates the use, sale, and provision of plastic bags as packaging materials here, according to Ma. Fe Trespuentes, head of the Bacolod Environment and Natural Resources Office (BENRO).
Trespuentes said they are eyeing to impose plastic holiday once a week beginning October this year.
“After gathering all the inputs from the stakeholders, we are proposing two things, either the ‘no plastic Wednesdays’ or the ‘no plastic Sundays’”, she said.
She added that there was also a proposal to hold it during Fridays because it is a market day.
“For a start, it would be limited to sando bag because fish vendors in public markets here are still allowed to use plastics,” she said.
She also encouraged the public to use reusable bags and other alternatives in lieu of the sando bags.
CO No. 562 was approved on October 5, 2011 and was amended though CO No. 698 in 2018.
The City Council amended Section 3 of CO 562 which stated that business establishment dispensing single-use plastic bags including but not limited to fast food outlets, market vendors, shopping malls, food kiosks, sari-sari stores, hardwares, groceries, pharmacies, and the like shall only provide biodegradable plastic if necessary or upon the customer’s request provides that it shall be with charge at the expense of the latter.
It also added that plastic bags with no handles, holes or strings commonly used as primary packaging for wrapping unpacked fresh foods at supermarkets, wet and dry markets, restaurants, canteen and the like shall not be included under the scheme as the usage of such plastic bag is justified on the grounds of public hygiene.
“Naglabay ang typhoon Carina, kita naton ang magnitude sang epekto sa Metro Manila. Kag kita diri sa Bacolod despite of our ongoing campaign like coastal, river, creeks and drainage cleanups, it seems nga daw wala naga-untat ang problema labi na gid sa single-use plastic, madamo gihapon makita sa baybayon,” said Trespuentes./PN
