Legarda Urges Filipinos to Have an Eco-Friendly Christmas

Senator Loren Legarda today urged Filipinos to give a gift to Mother Earth this yuletide season by having an environment-friendly Christmas.

Legarda made the statement as she supported EcoWaste Coalition’s “Climate-OK Christmas Guide” that would help eliminate unnecessary waste when celebrating the holiday season.

“Enjoying Christmas and New Year should not be done at the expense of our environment. It would be wise to consider the suggestion of the EcoWaste Coalition to have a green Christmas by using recycled materials for decorations, choosing energy-efficient Christmas lights and electric decors, preparing just enough amount of food during parties to avoid leftovers, choosing reusable utensils, and giving gifts that can go without wrappers,” she said.

“There’s nothing wrong in organizing grand parties if we have the means to do so, but if we want to enjoy our future holidays too, then we must be mindful of our environment now,” she stressed.

The Senator explained that the abundance of gifts and food during the holiday season usually produces tons of garbage as well. Data from the National Solid Waste Management Commission shows that an individual generates about 0.7 kilo of garbage on an average day, but it increases up to 1.2 kilos during the holiday season.

Furthermore, the EcoWaste Coalition’s waste audit of Manila Bay in November last year showed that 75.55% of the trash collected in the area was composed of plastic discards, 20.47% of which are polystyrene plastic.

In this light, Legarda welcomed the implementation of Antipolo City government’s City Ordinance 2009-370 prohibiting the use of plastic bags and polystyrene plastic, such as Styrofoam, after the moratorium on the ordinance ended last November 3.

“I am happy that more and more LGUs are prohibiting the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags and polysterene plastic. I call on other LGUs to also craft their own ordinance on total plastic bag ban to compel citizens and business establishments against the use of plastic. I hope this can be done before the year ends as a gift not only to Mother Earth but also to our citizens who will be the ultimate beneficiaries of this effort,” Legarda concluded.