EcoWaste Coalition Pushes for a Plastic-Free Black Nazarene Feast
With less than a month left until the epic feast of the
Black Nazarene on January 9, a waste and pollution watchdog group called on the
millions of devotees to shun plastic disposables for a greener celebration.
In a press statement, the EcoWaste Coalition underlined
the importance of cutting the consumption and disposal of single-use plastics
in light of the efforts of Manila Mayor Isko Moreno to clean up the capital
city.
“Pervasive littering has tainted each and every re-enactment
of the Traslacion from Luneta to Quiapo as if leaving rubbish on the ground is
an ethical and legal thing to do,” said Jove Benosa, Zero Waste Campaigner,
EcoWaste Coalition.
“Littering goes against the church teaching calling on
the faithful to care for creation, including marine life that is seriously
threatened by plastic pollution," he said.
Making the Traslacion plastic-free will be in line with
the call earlier made by Pope Francis "to confront this (plastic)
emergency," the EcoWaste Coalition pointed out.
Pope Francis, in his message last year for the World Day
of Prayer for the Care of Creation, stated "we cannot allow our seas and
oceans to be littered by endless fields of floating plastic."
"Devotees can show their support to the papal plea
against plastic pollution and to the ongoing Manila makeover by minimizing
plastic and other residual waste during the conduct of the Traslacion,"
Benosa said.
"Improper waste disposal is also a violation of laws
banning littering and dumping in public places,” he added.
Manila City Ordinance 7866, Metro Manila Development
Authority (MMDA) Regulation No. 96-009 as amended by Regulation No. 99-006, and Republic Act
9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, explicitly prohibit and penalize
littering, Benosa pointed out.
Republic Act 9003, in particular, punishes violators upon
conviction with a fine of P300 to P1,000, community service of one to 15 days,
or both.
This year’s “pahalik” and procession of the revered image
of the Black Nazarene yielded 47 truckloads of trash equivalent to 160 tons,
according to the MMDA.
Among the items discarded along the six-kilometer
processional route were single-use plastic bags, bottles, cups and plates, as
well as polystyrene food containers, cigarette butts and bamboo skewers.
To reduce the volume of rubbish thrown on streets and
sidewalks in next year's Traslacion, the EcoWaste Coalition appealed to all
Black Nazarene devotees, vendors and fiesta organizers and volunteers, to heed
the following suggestions:
1. To the
devotees: Avoid consuming products in single-use plastics, and dispose of trash
properly.
2. To vendors:
Refrain from selling snacks and drinks in plastic disposables, and be
responsible for your discards.
3. To food and
water givers: Desist from offering water in single-use plastic bags, bottles or
cups, and refrain from giving meals in polystyrene or Styrofoam
containers. Go for reusable containers.
4. To fiesta
organizers: Don’t use plastic bags (i.e.,
“plastic labo”) as banderitas, or street garlands.
5. To all fiesta
participants: Prevent and reduce all forms of fiesta waste, and never leave
rubbish on the road, sidewalk, street corner, park and plant box.
-end-
Reference:
http://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2018/documents/papa-francesco_20180901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html
https://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2001/ra_9003_2001.html
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