Plastic Ban

Banning the Use of Plastic Carry out Bags

Bauan, Batangas.  The use of plastic carry out bags and polystyrene or styro foam is now officially banned in this municipality.  Local Sangguniang Bayan Ordinance numbered 11-08-0034, authored by Hon. William C. Abrahan and co-authored by Hon. Presnedy N. Bacal, Hon. Neil P. Valdez and Hon. Julian Casapao bans or prohibits the use of Non-biodegradable plastic carry out bag and polystyrene foam at the point of sale by retail / business establishments in the Municipality of Bauan.

  The said Ordinance was passed by the august body of the Sangguniang Bayan on Bauan and was signed into law by the Hon. Ryanh M. Dolor, Municipal Mayor on August 19, 2011.  However, the local government allowed retailers and food chain outlets to consume their stocks before the full implementation of the Ordinance.


ORDINANCE
NO. 11-08-0034

BANNING THE USE OF NON-BIODEGRADABLE PLASTIC
CARRY OUT BAG AND POLYSTYRENE FOAM AT POINT OF SALE BY RETAIL/BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BAUAN AND PROVIDING EDUCATION AND INCENTIVES FOR SHOPPERS TO USE REUSABLE BAGS AT AFFECTED RETAIL/BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BAUAN
(AUTHOR: HON. WILLIAM C. ABRAHAN,)
(CO-AUTHORS: HON. PRESNEDY N. BACAL,
HON. NEIL P. VALDEZ AND HON. JULIAN C. CASAPAO)

WHEREAS, the Municipality of Bauan has a duty to protect the natural environment the economy and health of the citizens of the town; and

WHEREAS, plastic shopping bags and polystyrene foams create a significant litter problem in the Municipality of Bauan; and

WHEREAS, plastic bags and polystyrene foams contaminate recycling operations and are otherwise difficult to recycle due to the logistics of sorting, contamination of inks, and the low quality of the plastic used, resulting in an extremely low estimated recycling rate for plastic bags; and

WHEREAS, retail outlet stores could educate and encourage their customers to use environmentally preferable alternatives to non-biodegradable plastic bags which are readily available, including reusable cloth bags and paper bags; and

NOW, THEREFORE, THE COUNCIL OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF BAUAN DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS

  1. “Affected retail/business establishments” means any retail and/or business establishments located within the geographical limits of the Municipality of Bauan.

  1. “Compostable or biodegradable bag” means a carry out bag that is certified and labeled as meeting the current standard as set by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) or by any authorized government agency that has control over the said certification.

  1. “Customer” means any person purchasing food or other materials from an affected retail/business establishment.

  1. “Operator” means a person in control of or having daily responsibility for, the daily operation of an affected retail/business establishment, which may include, but is not limited to, the owner of the affected establishment.

  1. “Plastic carry out bag” means a non-biodegradable plastic bag provided by a store to a customer at the point of sale. These bags are often referred to as “t-shirt” or “sando” bags.

  1. “Recyclable Paper Bags” means a paper carry out bag provided by an affected retail establishment to a customer at the point of sale for purpose of transporting groceries or other goods and meet all the requirements as verified and found in the standards set by the authorized government agency.

  1. “Reusable Bag” means a bag that is specifically designed and manufactured for multiple reuse and is (1) made of cloth or other machine washable fabric, or (2) made of other durable material suitable for re-use.

  1. “Polystyrene Foam” means as a petroleum based plastic made from the styrene monomer. A lightweight material known as styro foam to most of the people and is used in all types of products from cups to plates that keep food and beverages intact and safe.

SECTION 2. PROHIBITED ACTS AND REQUIREMENTS

A.  Affected retail/business establishments are prohibited from providing plastic carry out bags or selling of polystyrene foams to their customers at the point of sale to transport items. Reusable bags, recyclable paper bags and compostable or biodegradable bags, including biodegradable plastic bags, are allowed alternatives.

B.   Affected retail/business establishments are strongly encouraged to provide incentives for the use of reusable bags through the use of education and credits, rebates or tokens for individuals who bring reusable bags.

C.  If affected retail/business establishments choose to use biodegradable plastic bags, they are encouraged to use the compostable or biodegradable bags that are easily differentiated from non-biodegradable plastic carry out bags, through color coding or other markings.

D. Nothing in this section shall be read to preclude affected retail establishments from making compostable or biodegradable bags available for sale or free to customers.

SECTION 3. LIABILITY AND ENFORCEMENT

A.  The Municipal Mayor or his designee will have primary responsibility for enforcement of this Ordinance. The Municipal Mayor or his designee is authorized to promulgate regulations and to take any and all other actions reasonable and necessary to enforce this Ordinance, including but not limited to, entering the premises of any affected retail establishment to verify compliance.
B.  An affected retail/business establishment that is operated in violation of any of the requirements of this Ordinance is deemed a public nuisance and is subject to enforcement action pursuant to the Municipal Ordinance. Penalties assessed for violations of this chapter are specified herein.

SECTION 4. PENALTY

A.   If the Municipal Mayor or his designee determines that a violation of this Ordinance occurred, he/she will issue a written warning notice to the operator of an affected retail establishment that a violation has occurred.

B.  If the affected retail establishment has subsequent violations of the Ordinance, the following penalties will apply.
a.  A fine, payable by the owner of the affected retail establishment or the corporation itself in the amount of ONE THOUSAND PESOS (P1,000.00)  for the first violation after the warning notice is given.
b. A fine in the amount of ONE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED PESOS (P1,500.00) for the second violation after the warning notice was given.
c.  A fine in the amount of TWO THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED PESOS (P2,500.00) for the third or any future violations after the warning notice was given.

C.  Affected retail/business establishments may request an administrative hearing to adjudicate any penalties issued under this Ordinance by filing a written request with the Municipal Mayor, or his or her designee. The Municipal Mayor, or his or her designee, promulgates standards and procedures for requesting and conducting an administrative hearing under this Ordinance. Any determination from the administrative hearing on penalties issued under this Ordinance will be final and conclusive.

SECTION 5. CLINICAL, PERIODIC OR SPOT INSPECTION FEES. There shall be a fee of ONE HUNDRED PESOS (P100.00) Inspection Fees chargeable to the subject establishments which fees shall be paid before the Municipal Treasury as stipulated upon the inspection form presented by any official member of the Monitoring Team.  

SECTION 6. MONITORING TEAM. There shall be a monitoring team that shall conduct a clinical, periodic or spot inspection to determine whether the subject establishments are following the provisions of this ordinance. The said monitoring team shall be created by an ordinance for which members shall be determined by the chairman of the Committee on Environment who shall become the Chairman of the herein provided Monitoring Team.

SECTION 7. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY. The Chief Executive shall have the powers to delegate such authority as maybe necessary to the members of the Monitoring Team in an effort to ensure the success of the implementation of this ordinance.

SECTION 8. EXEMPTIONS

A.   No Retail/Business establishments in the Municipality of Bauan are exempt from this ordinance.
B.   This Ordinance applies only to non-biodegradable carry out plastic bags and polystyrene foams provided at the point of sale. The provisions of this Ordinance do not apply to single use plastic/net bags exclusively used to transport produce such as apples, oranges, grapes, carrots and other similar fruits or vegetables to the point-of-sale counter of the affected retail/business establishment.

SECTION 9. REPEAL CLAUSE

Nothing in this Ordinance shall be interpreted or applied so as to create any requirement, power or duty in conflict with the Philippine Constitution or any other national or local laws.

SECTION 10. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE

If any section, paragraph, sentence, clause, word or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unenforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have passed this ordinance and each section, paragraph, sentence, clause, word or phrase thereof irrespective of any provision being declared unconstitutional or otherwise invalid.

SECTION 11. EFFECTIVE DATE

This ordinance shall take effect on September 17, 2011. The time between the effective and the date of passage shall be an educational grace period. 

Approved – August 10, 2011
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