Online retailers and merchants have been warned by Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Undersecretary Benny Antiporda to not be "abusive" when it comes to the usage of bubble wrap.
"We would prefer the use of biodegradable wrapping materials like used newspapers rather than bubble wrap, which is made of plastic," said Antiporda, the alternate chairman of the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC).
"Its abusive use will not be tolerated," he added.
Antiporda made these remarks after he acknowledged how retailers, especially those on online shopping platforms, have been indiscriminately using bubble wrap in shipping their goods to customers.
The DENR official reckoned that not all products need to be bubble-wrapped for shipping since not all products are fragile. He also contended that alternative packing methods would give the same cushion provided by bubble wrap.
"We all know that they are using plastic bubble wrap as cushion for their fragile products. Old newspapers can also be of the same effect as the bubble wrap," Antiporda said.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said last year that Filipinos' transactions with online shopping sites soared amid the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).
The fact that their purchased items could be delivered straight to their doorstep have allowed buyers to shop despite the strict stay-at-home orders. This trend has continued to this day.
Bubble wrap, while reusable, is still plastic and not environment-friendly, stressed Antiporda.
The NSWMC has been pushing for the implementation of the ban on non-environmentally acceptable products (NEAP), which primarily targets single-use plastics.
The NEAP list is a key provision of Republic Act (RA) No.9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. It was only in February 2020 when the first two items were placed on the proposed NEAP list--plastic straws and stirrers.