The real danger of plastics
According to scientists, polyethylene — a common plastic used to manufacture plastic bags and bottles — has been detected in 62 placental tissue samples collected. These tiny plastics were also detected in human blood, breast milk and the lungs.
GIVEN THESE fiNDINGS, IT TURNS out that the reality of having microplastics in our bodies is no longer an ugly prophecy. It is a fact. We ingest or inhale them all the time.
Disposing of plastic can be an illusion. Whenever you throw a shampoo sachet or an empty pancit wrapper in the bin, you’re not certain of truly getting rid of IT. PLASTICS MANAGE TO fiND THEIR way back to us in a form that wreaks havoc on our bodies.
Again, “ang basurang itinapon mo, babalik din sa ‘yo.” It’s a problem that is there, but most of us have not acknowledge as a health risk.
In a span of a year, however, I am glad to say that not everything is doom and gloom.
The Community Legal Help and Public Interest Center Inc. (C-HELP), a nongovernment organization I belong to, has taken legal steps to hold seven major fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies accountable for violating consumer rights to safety and a healthy environment. These big corporations are Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, Nestle, Unilever, Colgate Palmolive, Universal Robina Corp. (URC), and Proctor and Gamble (P&G). This was to protest their practice of putting “recycle me,” “recycle,” “recycle ready” and “recyclable” in their product labels despite these items being unrecyclable.
C-HELP is an organization that “assists grassroots communities and marginalized sectors for the protection of human rights and the environment through free consultations, representation, research, referral and contribution to policymaking and development.”
WE fiLED A CASE LAST NOVEMBER 2022. Of these seven Goliaths, however, only P&G offered to have a dialogue to address our concerns. C-HELP founder and executive director Zelda Soriano remarked that this move of P&G was a manifestation that they are a responsible corporate entity.
This dialogue resulted in an agreement that satisfied both parties, thanks to the Department of Trade and Industry’s mediation. Some of the results are largely symbolic, like the “goodwill” refund on the purchase price of the product cited. P&G has also agreed to review recommendations on their recycling labels. They have also agreed to maintain open communications in the search for environmentally sustainable solutions to reduce the use of plastic in consumer goods.
As Fread de Mesa puts it, this development is “a win for communities throughout the country whose lives have been impacted by plastic pollution.”
The fight for our people and the environment’s health doesn’t stop here. We fervently hope that the remaining six corporations respond to our complaint. Future generations should not suffer because of the current lack of regard for the proliferation of plastics. It may seem like a lot of work, as these big FMCGs operate on a global scale. But we have to continue to raise the issue and fiGHT BATTLES EVEN FOR SMALL VICtories, as all of our efforts may hopefully contribute to a larger win down the line.
As the saying goes, “Success is a series of small victories.”