Philippines: Our Plastic Oceans
The Philippines is a nation of islands, but it is also a nation on the move. We stand on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geological reality that makes us a land constantly in motion. While the headlines often focus on the looming threat of "The Big One," a single, catastrophic earthquake, the true story of our seismic reality is far more intricate and constant. It is a story told not through a single event, but through a rhythm of thousands of tremors that define our every year.
This data story is a look at that rhythm. Using the seismic data from 2025, we will move past the fear of a singular disaster and explore the truth of our nation’s relationship with the earth. We will see that earthquakes are not an aberration, but a normal part of life. We will delve into the data to understand the silent majority of tremors, the meaningful few that serve as our wake-up calls, and the geographic patterns that map our vulnerability and our resilience. This is not a narrative of panic, but a call to acceptance—a call to build a culture where being ready for the earth's constant tremors is simply part of being Filipino.
Over 970,000 Tons of Plastic are in our oceans each year
Plastic leaves a poisonous legacy on our oceans, as it breaks down it releases powerful green house gasses. But aside from direct emission of plastic onto the environment, they also produce the issue of microplastics. Recent studies have suggested adverse effects on plankton to produce oxygen.
80% of the plastic in the ocean comes from Asia
A large contributing factor for this phenomenon in Asia is due to the popularity of Sachet's in most Asian Countries, especially South East Asian Nations. Sachet's are small plastic pouches that carry different sorts of product. These plastics fundamentally break the circular economy of recycling and without proper waste managment system, sachet's have a high chance of ending up in the ocean.
South East Asian Nations have the largest share of plastic in the ocean.
Most ASEAN countries are emerging economies with densly populated areas living near shorelines, contributing to the plastic emission.
Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand contribute 54% of plastic emission dumped into the ocean
These countries have high density populations living close to either coastlines or inland waterways. These factors, combined with high rainfall, further increases the probability for mismanaged plastic waste.
Philippines alone is responsible for 1/3 of the mismanaged plastic in the ocean
Sachet's (single use plastics) account for roughly 50% of the plastic waste emission in the Philippines. Sachet's are created for the purpose of helping low-income communities in these countries but have a terrible plastic waste debt for countries with underdeveloped waste managment systems.
Southeast Asia’s plastic mismanagment issues does not just come from coastlines, population size or income
Despite lower population and purchasing power, countries like Philippines and Malaysia still emit more plastic than China, USA or Japan. This problem stems from rapid growth that these Asean countries have made, and waste managment have not developed enough to handle these growing economies
7 out of the top 10 rivers emitting plastic into the ocean belong to the Philippines
80% of Mismanaged Trash originates from Rivers. The combination of rapid urbanization in cities like Manila and close proximity to several rivers have led these rivers to produce the most plastic waste emission. Majority of these rivers are also located within NCR province of the Philippines, most of the damage is localized to the city of manila.
Potential Solutions to our waste issue?
Legislation
Several solutions have been passed to address the Philippines problems with sachets. In the Philippines we have RA9003, which is a law that tells companies that they are responsible for their own waste, however nothing is specifically stated for sachets.
Circular Economy
Currently creating a circular economy for plastic is a pipe dream, at least for the Philippines. There is a high-cost attached to the recycling of plastic with high electricity price and logistic costs.
Corporate Responsibility
Most corporations have entertained the idea of phasing out the production of sachets and, most acknowledge its effect on the environment. Corporations like Unilever are working on creating biodegradable materials and trying to help build the infrastructure for waste management. But ultimately their stance on plastic sachet are that it gives opportunity to low income households to afford their products. It is prevalent in the Philippines because sachets are the cheaper alternatives. Although cheaper for the individual, sachets are very difficult to recycle and would cost the country more down the line.
What can Consumers do?
Passing the blame on the consumers for the never ending mismanagement of plastic waste is a terrible prospect, But most Filipinos are burdened with challenging lives, and not much thought goes into waste management. But one method that is currently being tried is to promote or create programs that buy back this plastic waste from consumers. Several cities in the Philippines like Quezon City have started a program called trash to cashback. These programs attempts to create a circular economy for sachets and educate the average Filipino.