TO DETER the irresponsible disposal of used facemasks and other personal protective equipment (PPE), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) is being urged to issue a directive to protect public health and the environment from littered masks and PPE. This directive should instruct local government units (LGUs) to craft ordinances that will prohibit and penalize the improper disposal of used masks and other PPE.
This new directive should build on DILG Memorandum Circular No. 2020-071 issued on April 9 yet requiring mandatory use of facemasks or other protective equipment in public areas to avoid further transmission of COVID-19. Major cities have adopted corresponding ordinances but fell short of mobilizing the public to safely dispose of used masks and related discards. DILG can make this nationwide in scope.
The careless disposal of used COVID-19 protective gears and products endangers public health and the environment and violates existing laws and regulations on ecological waste management. Enacting and enforcing local ordinances banning the arbitrary disposal of used masks and other PPE should deter citizens from simply throwing potentially infectious discards onto the streets, which may end up contaminating our oceans and the food supply chain with microplastic particles/
Concerned LGUs should take their cue from the city councils of Davao and Manila that have started deliberations on proposed ordinances to counter the improper disposal of soiled masks and related items. These local ordinances should aim to:
a. stop the unsafe disposal of used facemasks and related protective gears and products
b. ensure the ecological management of COVID-19 waste and to promote waste workers’ health and safety; and
c. promote health awareness and environmental responsibility among the citizens
Ah yes, the ordinances should apply to the disposal of all types of facemasks, face shields, hand gloves and other PPE, as well as disinfectant and hygiene products such as wipes, tissues, rubbing alcohol and hand sanitizers, in public places such as streets, sidewalks, parks, canals, esteros and other water bodies in line with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act and other laws.
To be effective, the ordinances should further promote compliance to waste separation at source and the segregated disposal of healthcare wastes such as used masks and PPE.
The improper disposal of soiled facemasks, which contain respiratory droplets of people who wore them, and other PPEs may endanger the health of others who pick them and then touch their own faces. They could also worsen plastic trash and other pollutants harming the marine ecosystems.
