Amendments to city’s plastic ordinance, proposed
City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO) head Atty. Rhenan Diwas has forwarded, March 1, his office’s proposed amendments and additional provisions to city ordinance number 35, series of 2017, entitled, “Regulating the sale, distribution and use of plastic carry/shopping bags and styrofoam in the City of Baguio and providing penalties for violations thereof” to councilor Joel Alangsab and Atty. Brenner Bengwayan, city council secretary.
Alangsab chairs the local legislature’s committee on health and sanitation, ecology and environmental protection.
Among the proposed amendments are on the definition of a ‘plastic bag’ where the measure defines as ‘Any bag made in whole or in part of polyethylene, polypropylene and polycarbonate, among others, and designed to be provided or utilized at the point of sale for carrying or transporting goods or item.”
The amendment seeks to add: “Likewise, a plastic bag with handles or strings usually made of low-density polypropylene or other single used plastic material. This type of packaging is often provided to a customer at the point of sale.”
Engr. Wilbur Suanding of the CEPMO’s wastewater and hazardous waste management division said the proposed amendments are currently being deliberated on by the city council.
Earlier, city council legislative staff officer I Michelle Dulay submitted a status report to Vice Mayor Faustino Olowan, February 8, on resolution number 244, series of 2018, “Tasking the CEPMO to immediately conduct the necessary orientation and training to all personnel to be assigned or deputized to implement ordinance number 35, series of 2017.”
Her report stated that based on the information and inputs of CEPMO, the resolution is being implemented.
Diwas, in a 2021 Bi-Annual Report prepared by Suanding, enumerated various activities conducted by the Plastic and Styrofoam Free Baguio Task Force from August 24 to December 14 last year.
These include the conduct of information education campaigns on the ordinance; distribution of primers and tarpaulins; confiscation of plastic bags; orientation seminars and information dissemination; and more. – Gaby B. Keith
