Sen. Cynthia Villar urges more measures to control plastic use

MANILA, Philippines — The government needs more measures to control the use and entry of plastic waste into the country’s waters, Sen. Cynthia Villar said yesterday.

“The use of plastic products over the years has taken its grim toll on our natural resources. Our marine waters are choking from plastic wastes that have been dumped into our waters,” she said as she attended the cleanup and exhibits marking the 11th year since the 175-hectare Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park was established.

Villar said the country ranks third next to China and Indonesia in the volume of mismanaged plastic waste, which “are destroying our marine natural resources and the habitats of resident and migratory wild birds.”

Villar, chairperson of the Senate’s environment and natural resources committee, is pushing for more efforts to reduce if not stop the use of plastics.

The wetland park has more than 36 hectares of mangrove forest, the thickest and most diverse among the remaining mangroves within Manila Bay.