GOOD MORNING TO EVERYONE AND THANK YOU FOR THAT INTRODUCTION.

SO JUST TO BE FULL DISCLOSURE, QUINTIN PASTRANA AND I WORKED, PARTNERSHIP CAPACITY, WHEN HE WAS AT HIS FORMER POSITION WITH CHEVRON CORPORATION. AND WE HAD A VERY, VERY INTERESTING SUSTAINABILITY CHALLENGE IN THE PROVINCE OF ALBAY.

BUT GOOD MORNING. IT’S A GREAT PRIVILEGE FOR ME TO BE HERE TALKING TO YOU ESPECIALLY AS WE HAVE IN OUR AUDIENCE THE PRIME MOVER, THE PRINCIPAL AUTHOR OF OUR EPR LAW, SENATOR CYNTHIA VILLAR, I WISH FOR EVERYONE TO PLEASE GIVE SENATOR VILLAR A VERY BIG HAND.

SO LIKE DR. SELVA RAMACHANDRAN, I WILL DISPENSE WITH THE DETAILED SALUTATIONS BUT I WISH TO ACKNOWLEDGE CERTAINLY THE GREAT SUPPORT THAT THE DENR HAD COMING FROM UNDP. DR. SELVA, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND OF COURSE OUR PARTNERS FROM JAPAN, GERMANY, NORWAY AND THE EU AS A WHOLE.

OF COURSE, WE’RE JOINED HERE AS WELL BY REPRESENTATIVES FROM SPAIN. FOR THEIR SUPPORT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND OF COURSE WE HAVE REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE US, AS WELL.

SO GOOD MORNING TO ALL OUR FRIENDS AND DISTINGUISHED GUESTS. USUALLY I HAVE A PLATFORM SO YOU CAN SEE ME BETTER BUT WE’LL DISPENSE WITH THAT THIS MORNING.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR MAKING TIME FOR US TODAY AND TO DISCUSS OUR JOURNEY TOWARDS THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY.

CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS MAKE UP THE MAJORITY OF GLOBAL RISKS PERCEPTIONS IN THE NEXT DECADE. SO THUS WE NEED SUSTAINED, CONCERTED, AND EVIDENCE-INFORMED INVESTMENTS AND ACTIONS TO PROTECT AND ENHANCE OUR NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION FOR ALL THE DIFFERENT ECOSYSTEMS THAT WE HAVE FROM LAND AND SEA AND OF COURSE WE KNOW THAT ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, OUR ECOSYSTEMS, BIODIVERSITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE ARE INEXTRICABLY LINKED. A FAILURE IN ONE OF THESE DIMENSIONS WILL CASCADE WELL INTO THE OTHER. WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT POLICY CHANGES OR INVESTMENTS, THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS, BIODIVERSITY LOSS, FOOD SECURITY, NATURAL RESOURCE CONSUMPTION WILL ACCELERATE OUR ECOSYSTEMS COLLAPSE, IT WILL ALSO THREATEN OUR FOOD SECURITY AND CERTAINLY LIVELIHOOD, AND WILL AMPLIFY THE VULNERABILITY OF OUR COMMUNITY TO NATURAL AND MAN-MADE STRUCTURES.

WE ARE ALL IN AGREEMENT THAT INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES HAVE LED MANKIND INTO THE ANTHROPOCENE. THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM STATES THAT, IN FACT, HUMANS CONSUME, AS YOU SEE THERE, 1.75 TIMES THE NATURAL RESOURCES THAT THIS EARTH IS CAPABLE OF REGENERATING. MOREOVER, THE MAJORITY OR 70% OF GREENHOUSE-GAS (GHG) EMISSIONS COME FROM MATERIALS HANDLING AND USE. WE ARE AT A POINT IN OUR HISTORY WHEN MAN HAS ALTERED NATURE AND I HOPE THAT WE ARE ALL HERE TODAY BECAUSE BY OUR ACTION OR DECISION WE NEED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. IN SHORT, WE BROKE IT, WE FIX IT.

AS A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING COUNTRY, THE PHILIPPINES FACES MANY CHALLENGES INCLUDING UNSUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION PRACTICES, INCREASING WASTE GENERATION, AND THE DIRE NEED TO ACTUALLY BUILD CAPACITY TO REDUCE, REUSE AND REPURPOSE OUR WASTE.

BRIEFLY, WE GENERATE ROUGHLY 61,000 METRIC TONS OF SOLID WASTE DAILY. ESTIMATES VARY BUT WE UNDERSTAND THAT BETWEEN 12 TO 24% OF THAT WASTE IS PLASTIC IN VARIOUS FORMS. WE USE, AS WE HEAR IN ESTIMATES, MORE THAN 163 MILLION PLASTIC SACHET PACKETS, 48 MILLION SHOPPING BAGS, AND 45 MILLION THIN-FILM BAGS A DAY. 33% OF WHICH IS DISPOSED OF IN LANDFILLS AND IN DUMPSITES AND AROUND 35% IS ACTUALLY LEAKED INTO THE OPEN ENVIRONMENT AND EVENTUALY INTO OUR OCEANS AND FIELDS.

IN A WORLD BANK STUDY CONDUCTED IN 2019, IT WAS ALSO REPORTED THAT AROUND 70% OF THE MATERIAL VALUE OF PLASTICS IS LOST TO THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY EACH YEAR. THIS IS EQUIVALENT TO ROUGHLY A VALUE LOSS OF AROUND USD 790-890 MILLION PER YEAR.

CIRCULARITY, THEREFORE, IS NOT JUST LINKED TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY. ITS PROCESSES CAN YIELD MULTIPLE SYSTEM-WIDE BENEFITS BEYOND RESOURCE EFFICIENCY AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION. STRATEGIC WASTE MANAGEMENT POLICIES AND PRACTICES CAN PROVIDE STABLE LIVELIHOODS, IMPACT ECONOMIC GROWTH, AND WITH THE AVOIDANCE OF PLASTICS REACHING OUR ECOSYSTEMS IN BOTH LAND AND SEA, INCREASE FOOD AND WATER SECURITY AND THE DISASTER RESILIENCE OF OUR COMMUNITIES.

AS A COUNTRY, WE ARE IN PURSUIT OF THE RIGHT COMBINATION OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, POLICY AND PRACTICE. LOCALLY AND THROUGH OUR GLOBAL PARTNERS WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE THIS POSSIBLE. JUST AS WE ARE DISCOVERING THE TRUE VALUE OF OUR NATURAL CAPITAL, THE SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION THAT SUPPORT CIRCULARITY ARE WITHIN REACH. BY TAPPING INTO EXPERTISE BOTH NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY, THE MATERIAL VALUE OF PLASTICS MAY ALSO BE REALIZED. POLICY COHERENCE AND PARTNERSHIPS, SYNERGIES CAN UNLOCK ITS FULL ECONOMIC VALUE AND DRIVE THE ESTABLISHING OF BOTH THE GREEN AND THE BLUE ECONOMY.

(I’M TAKING A LITTLE BIT OF TIME ON THIS. I HOPE THAT YOU WILL FORGIVE THAT THE VISUALS ARE NOT MATCHING MY POINT. I DID INSERT THIS, EARLY THIS MORNING.)

ADDRESSING THIS URGENT ISSUE REQUIRES A WHOLE OF GOVERNMENT, WHOLE OF SOCIETY APPROACH, CONVERGENCE AND A UNITY OF PURPOSE AND I SUPPOSE THAT’S WHY YOU ALL ARE HERE INVOLVING MANY STAKEHOLDERS FROM OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, CORPORATIONS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS, AND INDIVIDUALS – ARE MUSTS. WE REALIZE THAT THE ORIGINAL LEGISLATION WITH REFERENCE TO OUR SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY IS DATED AS OF 2000, THE ECOLOGICAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT. IT HAS FACED IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES. ITS CORE PRINCIPLES HOWEVER MUST NOW BE REINFORCED. THE EVOLVING CONTEXT OF CLIMATE CHANGE, RESOURCE DEPLETION AND COMPETITION FOR NATURAL RESOURCES AS WELL AS GEOPOLITICAL UNCERTAINTIES NEED TO DRIVE THAT UPDATING.

THE EPR ACT INSTITUTIONALIZES THE EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY MECHANISM AS A PRACTICAL APPROACH TO EFFICIENT WASTE MANAGEMENT, FOCUSING ON WASTE REDUCTION, RECOVERY AND RECYCLING, AND I’D LIKE TO INTRODUCE THE CONCEPT OF REPURPOSING, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY PRODUCTS THAT MANIFEST INTERNATIONALLY ACCEPTED PRINCIPLES ON CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION. THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY, AND THE PRODUCERS’ FULL RESPONSIBILITY THROUGHOUT THE LIFE CYCLE OF THEIR PRODUCT. THIS SUPPORTS THE COUNTRY’S ACHIEVEMENT OF ITS NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTION AS MENTIONED BY CLIMATE CHANGE COMMISSION ESPECIALLY IN, WITH REGARD TO OUR WASTE WHEREIN THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS KEY MITIGATION MEASURES AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE. IT ALSO SUPPPORTS OUR SDGS ON CLIMATE ACTION, ON THE PROTECTION OF LIFE ON LAND AND UNDER SEA, ZERO HUNGER, WATER AND ESTABLISHING SUSTAINABLE CITIES AS WELL AS REGARDS OUR POVERTY ISSUES.

THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES TO SCALE UP THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND PURSUE GROWTH WHILE MOVING AWAY FROM THE UNSUSTAINABLE CYCLE OF “TAKE, MAKE, DISPOSE” MODEL. IN THE FIRST NDC SUBMITTED BY THE PHILIPPINES TO THE UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE, WE NOW HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO UPDATE THIS. WE UNDERSTAND AS OF THE GHG INVENTORY FOR THE PERIOD OF 2020 TO 2030 THERE ARE SECTORS THAT WE MUST PRIORITIZE. AMONG THESE AGRICULTURE, WASTE, INDUSTRY, TRANSPORT, AND ENERGY. WE AIM TO ADDRESS THE EMISSIONS REDUCTION IN THE WASTE SECTOR HEAD ON WHILE STRENGTHENING THE RESILIENCE AND ADAPTIVE CAPACITY OF OUR COUNTRY THROUGH GREEN SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES THROUGH SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION PRACTICES.

IN 2021, THE CABINET CLUSTER ON CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION, MITIGATION, AND DISASTER RISK REDUCTION, WHICH LEADS THE EFFECTIVE INTEGRATION OF POLICIES AND PROGRAMS ON CLIMATE AND DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT REDUCTION, AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, ADOPTED THE RESOLUTION CALLED THE “ADOPTING THE PRINCIPLES OF CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION, TOWARDS REGULATION AND PHASE OUT OF SINGLE-USE PLASTICS AND A RESPONSIBLE TRANSITION TO THE USE OF ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY PRODUCTS.” IT RECOGNIZED AND BUILT ON THE INITIATIVES OF ITS MEMBER AGENCIES SUCH AS “THE PHILIPPINE ACTION PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION” TO SUPPORT AND ACCELERATE TARGETS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 12 ESPECIALLY ON CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION AND THE COUNTRY’S THEN PDP ASPIRATION CALLED THE AMBISYON NATIN 2040.

ON THE PART OF THE DENR, WE ARE COMMITTED TO CONTINUE ON THIS JOURNEY BY STRATEGIC ENGAGEMENT FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EPR LAW AND THE LAUNCH THIS MORNING AIMS TO ACCELERATE THAT IMPLEMENTATION. THIS INCLUDES SCALING UP OF WASTE REDUCTION, RECOVERY AND REPURPOSING, AND SUPPORTING PRODUCT INNOVATION THAT WILL CATALYZE CIRCULAR ECONOMY.

SOLUTIONS FOR WASTE MANAGEMENT HOWEVER MUST BE COUPLED WITH APPROACHES THAT ENABLE SYSTEMS TO ADAPT TO CLIMATE CHANGE. OPPORTUNITIES TO INVEST IN RESILIENCE ARE ALSO VITAL TO THE SURVIVAL OF BUSINESSES SUCH AS YOURS. THIS MEANS INTEGRATING RISKS INTO YOUR CORE BUSINESS VALUE CYCLES AND INVESTING IN PREVENTION AND PREPAREDNESS FOR HAZARDS THAT ARE BEYOND THE FENCE LINES OF YOUR OPERATIONS. THESE WOULD INCLUDE INVESTMENTS IN BUILDING RESILIENT COMMUNITIES AND ABOVE THE CONSIDERATION OF THE EFFICIENT USE OF YOUR OWN MATERIALS RESOURCES.

LET ME INTRODUCE, AT THIS POINT, A KEY THEME THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE PART OF THE EPR IMPLMENTATION.

RESILIENT COMMUNITIES ALWAYS INCLUDE THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS SUCH AS THE INFORMAL WASTE SECTOR. WE NEED TO IMPROVE THEIR STATUS AND WORK CONDITIONS, AND INVEST IN CAPACITY BUILDING TO TRANSFORM THEIR VULNERABILITY. THIS SECTOR IS LOOKED AT AS A PART OF THE VALUE CHAIN WHICH THEY’RE EFFECTIVELY LOCKED OUT OF. THEY ARE PART OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN, A CRITICAL PART. HOWEVER, THEY ARE LOCKED OUT OF VALUE.

AS WE CONTINUE TO BEAR THE WEIGHT OF MILLIONS OF TONS OF PLASTICS, GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR NEED TO WORK TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT ECOLOGICAL, ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL GAINS AS COMPANIES ARE ALSO LEVERAGED AND MAGNIFIED FOR THE GOOD OF OUR COMMUNITIES, OUR ECOSYSTEMS AND OUR COUNTRY. THROUGH EPR AND THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY, THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US IN GOVERNMENT AND YOURSELVES, TO TRANSFORM LIVES AND LIVELIHOODS THROUGH SOCIAL INCLUSION AND THE PROVISION OF SOCIAL PROTECTION.

I CALL ON OUR PARTNERS TO INCLUDE IN THEIR PROGRAMS THE IMPROVEMENT OF LIVELIHOOD OF WASTE PICKERS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR LIVELIHOOD AND THE INCORPORATION INTO THE EVOLVING FORMAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT INDUSTRY.

PARTNERSHIP WITH ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS PBSP, PEACE AND EQUITY FOUNDATION, PERHAPS SOME OF YOUR CSR PROGRAMS AND LGUS NEED TO ROLL-OUT FINANCIAL LITERACY PROGRAMS AND BUILD SKILLS FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP.

CAPACITATING LGUS IS NECESSARY AND OTHER SECTORS WORKING WITH THEM TO IMPLEMENT A ROBUST SYSTEM ON DATA RECORDING, TRACKING, ANALYSIS, AND REPORTING.

THE DENR RECOGNIZES THE SOCIAL DIMENSION OF PLASTICS SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO ENGAGE, NOT JUST WITH THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND THE PUBLIC SECTOR, BUT WITH ACADEME, THE YOUTH, CIVIL SOCIETY AS WELL, AS WE INVEST IN EDUCATION, RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, AND INNOVATION TO DISCOVER NEW MATERIALS THAT ARE BOTH AFFORDABLE AND FUNCTIONAL.

WHAT WE ARE ASKING TODAY IS FOR EVERYONE TO JOIN US IN A WHOLE-OF-GOVERNMENT AND WHOLE-OF-SOCIETY EFFORT TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY AND RESILIENCE THROUGH UPCYCLING AND REPURPOSING WASTES AS WE KNOW IT AND REMOVING PLASTICS PERHAPS THROUGHOUT OUR ECONOMY WITH A SUFFICIENT SUBSTITUTION. WE HAVE SET VERY AMBITIOUS GOALS FOR REDUCING WASTE AND THIS REQUIRES TRANSFORMATIVE, SYSTEM-WIDE ACTIONS, AND LARGE-SCALE IMPLEMENTATIONS.

I WISH TO ACTUALLY CITE THERE THE WORK OF THE VILLAR FOUNDATION AND SENATOR CYNTHIA WILL BE SPEAKING TO YOU MORE ABOUT WHAT THEY DO TO REPURPOSE PLASTIC WASTE, AND VERY RECENTLY THE INAUGURATION OF A NEW PLANT OF A FRENCH COUPLE CALLED PINK FLAMINGO THAT TAKES WASTE FROM MUNTINLUPA AND THE ENVIRONMENT, AND TRANSFORMS IT INTO BUILDING MATERIALS AND FURNITURE.

I’D LKE TO THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR YOUR EXPRESSIONS OF SUPPORT AND COOPERATION AS WE WORK TOWARDS THE FULL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EPR ACT. ESSENTIALLY, YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO INTEGRATE EPR INTO YOUR ESG, AND IT IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASCRIBE TO THE GOALS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND TO ACTUALLY BE PART OF THE REPORTING SYSTEM ACCORDING TO THE NEW GUIDELINES OF THE TASK FORCE ON CLIMATE- RELATED FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES, THE TASK FORCE ON NATURE RELATED FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES.

THE DENR IS COMMITTED TO CONTINUING THESE DIALOGUES WITH ALL OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND TO BOLSTER COOPERATION AND UNDERSTANDING SO THAT WE CAN OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES OF INCOHERENCE AND THE LACK OF IMPLEMENTATION AS WE WORK TOWARDS AN INCLUSIVE, RESILIENT, AND SUSTAINABLE COUNTRY.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.