We cannot run a throw away society on a finite planet. - Paul Connett POSIBLE ANG ZERO WASTE! “Zero Waste is a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary. It aims to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. Zero Waste means designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them.” (Adapted from the Zero Waste Definition of the Zero Waste International Alliance) What’s Inside About this book 3 Messages 4 Fifteen Stories Towards Success in Zero Waste 10 Zero Waste Ambassadors 34 About MEF 36 MEF in Photos 38 Resources 43 About Republic Act 9003 ESWM Poster and Waste Classification Ten Steps in Establishing a Community ESWM Program Ecological Solid Waste Management at Home Artworks used are winners from San Fernando City’s Sining Kalikasan Poster Making Contest: 1st Place-College from Baliuag University; 1st Place-HS from the University of Assumption; 2nd Place-HS from San Lorenzo CSS; and 2nd Place-College from DHVTSU. Fifteen Stories Towards Success in Zero Waste Batangas City: Dangal ng Lungsod Awards Zero Waste Expo: Out of the Box, Out of the Dumps: Innovative Solutions to Waste 6th Zero Waste International Conference: Zero Waste Solutions in the Face of Climate, Chemical and Financial Crises Puerto Princesa City: Citywide ESWM Program MEF and CRACMES: Sowing the seeds for environmental care and protection USAID – Rotary Pasig River Improvement Project: Establishing Model Barangays in ABOUT THIS BOOK Quezon City In celebration of our Fifteenth Year Anniversary, MEF Environmental Education: is publishing this book “MEF@15: On The Road To Zero Project Water Education for Teachers Waste” to showcase and highlight some of our projects in the past 15 years. and Project Learning Tree USAID – ECO-Asia These stories, from our partner local government units, Sanitation Program: our campaigns and advocacies, our regular programs and Promoting Access to Urban Water and projects, and our events, represent MEF’s contribution to Waste Water Services the Zero Waste movement in the Philippines and in the The Senate MRF: world. From Legislation to Action These stories, presented chronologically in this book, also Pinatubo Hazard Urgent Mitigation demonstrates the changes and development in MEF’s Project (PHUMP III): approach to promoting Zero Waste. From giving simple ESWM Modelling in 15 Barangays workshops to barangays in Batangas, to establishing models, i.e. schools like CRACMES, barangays like Brgy. Zero Waste Youth Festival: Fort Bonifacio, and cities like San Fernando, Pampanga, Popularizing Zero Waste - MEF is constantly innovating in its approaches and Fort Bonifacio: strategies. Community Based ESWM Program Plastic Ban: We hope these stories will inspire other LGUs and institutions to do their part in achieving a Zero Waste From Muntinlupa to Manila Philippines. Angeles City: Zero Waste City Hall Each of these stories represent one piece of the Zero San Fernando City, Pampanga: Waste puzzle. While each of these featured communities On the Road to Zero Waste are still on their way towards Zero Waste, together they demonstrate that, indeed, Zero Waste is Possible! MEF@15: On The Road To Zero Waste 3 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN Greetings from Mother Earth Foundation (MEF), your partner in working towards a Zero Waste Philippines! Since our organization’s inception in 1998, MEF has gone forward from being a small group of friends who wanted to get rid of waste properly, to become a tireless voice in the fight towards the protection of our environment, specifically through the ecological management of waste. We reminisce with nostalgia the learning curves that we had to tackle during our infant years. We can proudly say that we have learned greatly from our experiences and from working with other NGOs, communities, the academe, and local government units. As the world’s population increases and our resources get depleted, we cannot just watch. We must work actively to protect, and save, our environment. Let us all work together to make our country and our Mother Earth a better place to live in -- for ourselves, our children, and the future generations. As Indian Chief Seattle said “We did not inherit the Earth from our forefathers, we just borrowed it from our children”. And the best place to start is with CHAIRMAN IN AcTION ourselves. We in the MEF Board of Trustees and our staff “walk our talk” in our plastic bag-free campaign. We bring our reusable cloth bags with us all the time; we use bayong and reusable bags and containers in the wet markets and supermarkets, we don’t use straw in our drinks and we use reusable cups and drinking glasses, nito plates lined with banana leaves or washable plates during our meetings. I wish to thank everyone who made our first 15 years a success; to our partners for continuing to trust us, to our friends from the Zero Waste network, to our dedicated Board of Trustes who are all volunteers and to our hardworking staff, maraming salamat po! Clockwise: With Miss Earth winners at the Pista y Kagueban in Puerto Princesa, Palawan; delivering a speech at the San Fernando citywide river clean up; at a ZWIA conference in Naples, Italy with Goldman Prize awardee Sonia Mendoza Rossano Ercolini; at the signing of the Climate Change Law of 2009 in Malacanang. 4 Messages MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT Isang maka-kalikasang pagbati! Mother Earth Foundation is celebrating its 15th Year Anniversary and I feel privileged to have been part of MEF in the last 8 years. It is also a great joy to discover and hear from our original members MEF’s first seven years. MEF has changed a lot and for the better. This is because of the hard work and dedication of the current Board of Trustees and staff, and also because of the contributions of everyone who came before us. Their experiences have taught us and continually guide us as we look forward to our next 15 years and beyond. Compiling these 15 stories and producing this book has been a challenge. Aside from the amount of work that it entails, telling 15 years’ worth of story in less than 30 pages was almost impossible. The pages allotted for each story don’t do justice to all the hard work and sacrifices that were put into it. But this book is not an instructional manual. Our goal for putting together these stories is to provide a snapshot of each effort and hopefully inspire others into action. PRESIDENT IN AcTION My immense admiration for my fellow Trustees for their undying commitment to MEF, for selflessly giving not only their time and skills but in many instances their personal resources. Thank you to our staff for all their sacrifices and hard work. Thank you also to all our members, volunteers and partners from the environment and the Zero Waste movement. Of course, our special thanks to all our partner LGUs, schools and companies. And to everyone, my deepest gratitude for your continued trust and support. For love of Mother Earth, Froi Clockwise: With kids from Baseco Compound; as member of the Philippine Delegation to the United Nations CSD; tree planting during Puerto Princesa’s Feast of the Forest; an interview with a local TV show. MEF@15: On The Road To Zero Waste 5 MESSAGE FROM SEN. LOREN LEGARDA My warmest greeting to Mother Earth Foundation on the occasion of your fifteenth anniversary! Congratulations for coming up with this book about the success stories on implementing zero waste programs by local government units (LGUs). In 2001, Republic Act 9003, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, a measure I authored, was signed into law. Since then, I have been advocating for the national government’s strict implementation of and LGUs’ faithful compliance with the law. The measure aims to create a clean and healthy environment using a system of solid waste management that includes segregation of garbage at its source, segregated transportation, processing, treatment and proper disposal of solid waste. It emphasizes on recycling so that less garbage is actually brought to the sanitary landfill and those brought to the final disposal site are effectively maintained. I am happy that Mother Earth Foundation came up with this book on best practices, which I hope will encourage more LGUs to work on their zero waste programs for the greater benefit of their communities. Let us work together to redefine development—to change our way of thinking and our way of doing, and give nothing less than our wholehearted commitment to a safer and cleaner world, a more resilient human society for many generations to come. Loren Legarda 6 Messages MESSAGE FROM SEN. PIA S. CAYETANO Warm greetings to the members, officials, and volunteers of Mother Earth Foundation (MEF) and congratulations on your 15th year anniversary! Your fifteen years of existence, together with the launch of your book entitled “MEF@15: On The Road To Zero Waste,” prove the success of your organization’s Zero Waste and other environmental advocacies. Further, your dedication to mobilize people in addressing the pressing issues of our environment translates to concrete projects and programs that serve to involve and inspire others to do the same. I admire your encompassing efforts to save our Mother Earth. Healing our planet is not an impossible task. The ultimate key to success is gathering together every human being in this endeavor, educating them and making them part of a cause greater than them. I salute your passionate take on this advocacy, as evidenced by every action you have taken through the years.