DAVAO CITY, Philippines — EcoWaste Coalition on Monday urged the public to take conscious steps to reduce the volume of trash in anticipation of the yuletide holidays.
This is after the zero waste advocacy group claimed that over 40,000 tons of garbage per day were generated during and after the Christmas and New Year festivities.
“The spate of holiday festivities is expected to generate extra tons of discards,” Ochie Tolentino, Zero Waste Campaigner, said.
She continued, “If we don’t exert any effort to responsibly consume and willfully segregate, reuse, recycle or compost our discards, our throw-outs would surely end up in street corners, empty lots, dumpsites, landfills, incinerators or even in the rivers, seas and oceans.”
Tolentino also urged shopping malls and the public to lessen the trash in order to reduce the environmental impact. This could be done by using reusable bags and containers, avoiding both paper and plastic carry bags as well as single-use party disposables.
To cut on food waste, Tolentino reminded consumers “to prepare only for what is needed and to ensure that excess foods are properly stored and recycled, or shared with others, particularly with indigent families and the homeless.”
“Recyclable materials such as boxes and papers, soda cans, glass and plastic bottles and other containers can be sold to junk shops or, better, given to informal waste recyclers to bring Christmas cheer to those who help in conserving our planet’s resources,” the group said.
The group likewise appealed for the non-use of firecrackers and fireworks to welcome the New Year to prevent the generation of toxic emissions and wastes, lower noise pollution, among others. (davaotoday.com)
