Project IWASTO Holds Second Webinar on Community-Level Waste Management

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – A Department of Science and Technology-funded research project successfully held the second session of its webinar series titled “IWASTO Natin Webinar Series on Sustainable Solid Waste Management Amidst COVID-19” last 23 July via Zoom and Facebook live.

Participated by around three hundred (300) people hailing from various sectors and groups throughout the Philippines, Project Integrated Waste Analysis, Survey, and Technological Options (Project IWASTO) organized the webinar series which will have a total three sessions on topics involving solid waste management.

Engr. Angela Aquino, Senior Science Research Specialist of Project IWASTO, presented a brief overview of the program as part of the opening remarks. For this session, speakers Mr. Emmanuel Alivio, Mr. Bramwell Gonzales, and Engr. Reido Panaligan discussed the endeavors of their respective organizations. 

Event poster for the webinar
(Source: Project IWASTO Facebook page)

“Kami sa GreenAntz ang ginagawa namin ay circular economy. [Ang mga plastic nanggagaling] from producers to consumers, then ‘away’[.] Kami yung kumukuha ng ‘away’. In our case[,] yung mga waste nagiging resource siya.” (“Here are GreenAntz we do circular economy. [The plastics flow] from the producers, [to the] consumers, then ‘away’. We are taking these [plastics thrown away]”. In our case, the wastes become [useful] resources.) Mr. Alivio of GreenAntz emphasized during her talk. He presented the innovative solutions of Green Antz Builders, Inc., a Bulacan-based enterprise that uses its proprietary technology to utilize plastic sachets as eco-bricks for various uses.

For the second talk, Mr. Bram Gonzales of Sari-Cycling discussed the initiatives of their group in promoting segregation at source. Currently, they have forged partnerships with select communities in urban Pasig City. “Let us focus on the present. We have things we can do [at] our homes, things we can do right now” Mr. Gonzales said in his concluding statement.

Engr. Reido Panaligan of the Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST) delivered the final talk for the second session. He explained that the CREST Urban Biogas System integrates various sustainable concepts such as renewable energy, waste management, permaculture, and materials recovery.

After the presentations, questions from webinar participants in both Zoom and Facebook were answered by the speakers. Engr. Ces Abad Jr. of Project IWASTO served as the moderator and emcee.

The next webinar session will be held tentatively on [early August]*. While first session held last 8 July focused on the technologies that could help manage biodegradable wastes, the last session will involve local government units’ response to the changing garbage landscape brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Project IWASTO aims to develop integrated solid waste information and technology management system for selected communities that are part of the Manila Bay watershed. It is a two-year project under the IM4ManilaBay Program, a consortium of research projects that aims to clean up and rehabilitate Manila Bay. The program component projects are funded by the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD).

*Editor's Note: The original reflected schedule was removed as the webinar session did not push through at that date. New schedule is subject to change depending on the speaker availability.

 

Project IWASTO Holds Webinar on Waste Management

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – A Department of Science and Technology-funded research project successfully launched its webinar series titled “IWASTO Natin Webinar Series on Sustainable Solid Waste Management Amidst COVID-19” last 8 July via Zoom and Facebook live.

Invitation poster of the webinar
(Source: Project IWASTO official Facebook page)

Participated by different representatives from various sectors both government and private, Project Integrated Waste Analysis, Survey, and Technological Options (Project IWASTO) lead the webinar series which, as of writing, will have a total three sessions on topics involving solid waste management.

The first session focused on the management of biodegradable wastes. Dr. Maria Antonia Tanchuling, project leader of Project IWASTO, presented a brief overview of the program as part of the opening remarks. For this, speakers Dr. Myra Tansenco and Engr. David Herrera discussed the technologies developed and promoted by the Environment and Biotechnology Division of the Department of Science and Technology – Industrial Technology Development Institute (DOST-ITDI).

“Philippine solid waste is largely composed of biodegradable waste, so this has great potential for composting” Dr. Tansenco emphasized during her talk. She presented the various composting technologies of DOST-ITDI that could be used for varying capacities depending on the target user.

Dr. Herrera discussed another potential use of biodegradable waste as a raw material to produce biogas (e.g. methane). “There is a need for [a] low cost waste treatment facility due to the growing animal industry and municipal garbage” he explained.

After the presentations, questions from webinar participants in both Zoom and Facebook were answered by the speakers.

The next webinar session will be held tentatively on July 16.

Project IWASTO aims to develop integrated solid waste information and technology management system for selected communities that are part of the Manila Bay watershed. It is a two-year project under the IM4ManilaBay Program, a consortium of research projects that aims to clean up and rehabilitate Manila Bay. The program component projects are funded by the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD).

Random Note: Hardwired Instincts in Conservatives?

The next time you bash a politically-charged fanatic and dismiss them for being "fools", try to understand their position. Learn first if their political stances are a product of their environment, or probably hardwired instincts.

Conservatives and DDS have a lot in common - they are fearful. They want safety, ngunit nilagak nila ang tiwala nila sa isang mesiyas kuno (but they have placed their hope in a so-called "messiah"). While it can be proven that the Philippines is relatively an unsafe place, the dilawans, especially from the upper echelons of society, are usually in a bubble. They have an over-optimistic view on the world.

The way I see it, conservatives have hardwired survival instincts that are grounded in the successful continuation of the species as manifested by their stances on family stability, birth control, social order, social hierarchy (weed out the undesirables, survival of the fittest). Liberals, on the other hand, believe in the equality of people, have less fear and thus are generally not afraid of new ideas that challenge social order and constructs, among others.

The Philippines, being a mashup of various ethnic groups, has tribalism as the default hardwired instinct. So it's not surprising why political parties are a joke. It's all about name recall and clinging to the semi-feudal poltical dynasties.

Chinese Shows for Broadcast in the Philippines: Kultural na Pananakop? Exercise on Soft Power?

“State-run PTV to air Chinese dramas, docus; Alejano sees PHL surrender” was the glaring headline of an article released by veteran news company GMA News. Summing up the news:

State-run television PTV-4 will air starting in August Chinese shows dubbed in Filipino.

According to the PNA, Chinese embassy press attache Li Lingxiao said the shows will include a TV drama, a Chinese movie, a cartoon and a documentary.

"From now on, our Filipino friends could, for the first time, watch Chinese TV series, documentaries, cartoons and movies dubbed in Tagalog on PTV," Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua said at the launch of what has been dubbed as the Chinese TV Theater.

Notable opposition lawmaker Gary Alejano of the Magdalo party decried the move, claiming it is an exercise of soft power. The reader can find the details in the article I linked. To sum it up, opposition personas dislike the plan to allow our state-run channel to broadcast Chinese shows which aims to showcase Chinese culture to the Filipinos.

So What’s the Big Deal?

Aside from taking our reefs and militarizing them, the People’s Republic of China has been flexing their muscles as part of their grand scheme to restore Fu Qiang – wealth and prosperity (I wrote a blog post about this in 2015). I believe China is well aware that Filipinos have slave mentality tendencies, more or less parallel with gross colonial mentality. Any Filipino with a high degree of socio-political awareness knows that we are a bunch of submissive folks with low national self-esteem thinking that anything “imported” is “superior”. (Madali mapasuko o magpasakop dahil ang tingin sa sarili ay mababa. Ika nga, lahat ng “imported” ay “superior”.) We cuck to the West, anything American is “better” to the point that the tag “Little Brown Americans” still applies to us.

It is a bit hypocritical that we (or many Filipinos) drool to South Korean soap operas (Koreanovelas), idolize Japanese anime characters, and look up to Americans for their culture. Some from this generation even pointed out that their weakening Filipino/Tagalog vocabulary is because of our “good education (in English)” and even spoke it as if it was a good thing. ¡Qué horror! Patawarin nawa sa ‘di nila pagtalastas sa kanilang pagkakamali! (The horror! Forgive them for being unaware of their mistake!)

So what’s the point? Point is the only reason for the outcry to this move is the fact the China’s other actions seem too shady or outright harassment. That is the point many of our friends, both anti and pro-Duterte have failed to point out, instead they resorted to calling each other bobo (stupid) or tanga (ignorant) and other ad hominems. China is like a distrusted big brother to the eyes of Filipinos. South Koreans, Japanese, and the Americans seem to be the good guys in the fight for safekeeping Filipino sovereignty. It should be obvious that our inherent prejudice against China is the sole reason why many are vocal against the move.

Just some trivia: Way back around 1998-2000, when I was a child there were even Chinese dub versions of my favorite show Scooby-Doo! Where Are You being aired on Sunday morning (or was it evening) on Cartoon Network  (Sample Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3_R5Zsvc7Q). There was no “panic” back then because the geopolitics of the region were a bit different from today’s situation.

Added Thought: We might be able to take advantage of this move by learning the enemy’s mentality. Like what Sun Tzu, esteemed Chinese author of “The Art of War” wrote, “知彼知己，百戰不殆；不知彼而知己，一勝一負；不知彼，不知己，每戰必殆 or “Know your enemy and know yourself, find naught in fear for 100 battles. Know yourself but not your enemy, find level of loss and victory. Know thy enemy but not yourself, wallow in defeat every time.

Short Comment on the House Bill No. 1022: Buhayin Baybayin? (English)

Commonly mislabeled as “Alibata”, the ancient Filipino script Baybayin may now become the official national writing system of the Philippines if the National Writing System Act is approved by the House Committee on Basic Education and Culture.

While I am open and receptive to this move to reintroduce Baybayin, I believe that this revival of Baybayin seems to be a superficial "love our language and culture" move. Why? No one has pointed out that we can’t (this is different from “don’t”) even speak our Filipino languages in a straight manner in our daily lives... nor do we think of Filipino as a language of the sciences, reasoning, and logic. (Remember that math book in Taglish with "deep Tagalog"? Remember that Asian Boss video[1] where those pitiful teens can't even speak straight Tagalog? Remember that comedic-sounding Taglish Bible[2]?)

You may point out that the use of language is to simply communicate. I believe it is also a reflection of our culture. Spanish loanwords are more compatible to Tagalog (and English loanwords are fine as well as long as it is formally Filipinized). We are losing vocabulary in both languages if Taglish continues. It decays people's ability to speak straight English let alone straight Tagalog (though the former is more important to many). Sure Taglish is convenient, I speak it daily too, but when in formal writing/correspondence it is annoying when people can't render straight English or formal Tagalog. I am pretty much a person who wants formality and order in the right situation.

Of course, I bade time before I released this statement. I might be viewed as a reklamador or whiner if I reacted too soon without sensing the netizens’ pulse. In the end, I have an optimistic view: The use of Baybayin might simultaneously engage the users to think of more “original” (I refuse to use the word “pure” since it cannot be defined) Filipino and this more already decaying words will be resurrected to common use.

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[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYLFoUTJuGU

[2] http://www.manilatimes.net/bible-soon-available-in-conversational-filipino/394104/

Zero Waste Conference 2018 Themed “No to Incineration”

I attended the Zero Waste Conference 2018 held last 26 January at the QCX Museum, Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City. The event was graced by speakers from non-government organizations like Greenpeace and Buklod Tao, some local government units, and some government-run institutions like the Philippine Heart Center. These experts in the field of solid waste management, anti-waste incineration, urban farming, models for zero waste, and climate change presented presentations involving challenges and sustainable solution towards zero waste society.

Outside the seminar hall, a fair was held in which participating/supporting companies were given a booth to present their products and/or services.

"Pairalin RA 9003" (Enact R.A. 9003) was one of the rallying cries of the conference.
(Republic Act 9003 is the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.)

I also laud the organizers for being faithful to the cause by using natural sunlight in the seminar hall and using reusable cutlery when serving lunch. The discussions can be summarized succinctly as follows: We are living in the age of overshoot – mindless growth and consumption strains the Earth’s carrying capacity. In an audit conducted by volunteers, 49.33% of garbage floating around Manila Bay is single-use plastic. Waste-to-energy solutions may seem to make waste disappear – but it does not solve the problem of overconsumption in the first place. The rest of discussions focused on some of the efforts done by sincere LGUs to combat the waste problem.

On Waste-To-Energy (WTE)

The main point of those who are fully-against incineration is that it "brainwashes people" into believing that the waste problems have been solved and they are free to consume carelessly. When I had a casual discussion about this with my friends who are also taking up Environmental Engineering, they agreed that the previous statement has a point.

A concern-causing statement shared by these groups is their claim that all waste-to-energy processes produce dioxins and furans. Not all WTE processes directly produce dioxins and furans as some non-burn processes like gasification and pyrolysis rarely produce especially when optimal conditions are set. (There are academic journals that can be cited, but I will reserve it for a more technical article.) We should be just as concerned about most burning processes in incineration (waste-to-energy), the most common of which is open burning. The latter is rampant in the Philippines especially in places with little or no solid waste management. I would go for an approach that is more realistic, that is, considering what is already happening. I agree with EcoWaste Coalition's stance in intensifying zero waste campaigns and information drive that aim to steer people away from wasteful practices. Pressuring big companies to reduce plastic from packaging is one of their ongoing efforts. However, let us also consider that unless we have some sort of green authoritarian regime, we cannot force all people to abandon their wasteful practices. In a weak state like the Philippines, where law enforcement is spotty, it’s no surprise that even laws against littering are rarely enforced.

This is where WTE must be used in urbanized areas like Metro Manila. We must do a double approach, like focusing both on information campaigns to steer away from consumerist tendencies of people and improving recycling procedures with WTE as last resort. "May point naman sila." (They have a point.) my friend said regarding the conference's stance. As an engineer, I believe in a mixed middle ground solution considering what is really going on and what can we do to intensify information campaign. Eh, what do you do? As of now, here are some things I do and I encourage you to do the same:

• Segregate wastes at source. Even if “someone else” (like your local Materials Recovery Facility) will segregate the wastes (hopefully), it’s still good to at least have a separate waste bin for biodegradable wastes (like in your kitchen). Follow RA 9003.
• Compost (if possible)
• I live in a house with maximum airflow, thus we are able to maintain a 1.5K pesos electricity bill per month. This is around kWh consumption. (The only exemption is during the summer months.)
• We collect rainwater, and even our LGU does the same by having their offices and public schools collect rainwater.
• Reuse some plastics. As much as possible, do not use disposable straws.
• Don't buy clothes made from polyester and synthetic fibers. These fibers do not degrade and contribute to microfiber pollution.

A classroom chair made from waste plastic materials.

There are many other things we can do that may be beyond the scope of this post. Anyhow, the conference was great in allowing environmentalists and other eco-warriors to meet each other and forge friendships. May the lessons the speakers imparted be put to heart by the audience.

SHORT POST: Rappler Issue

ON THE RAPPLER ISSUE RE: SEC REGISTRATION REVOKED

"Kung mamamato ka, siguraduhin mong hindi ka nakatira sa bahay na gawa sa salamin."

Hindi ako laban sa malayang pamamahayag o free press. Kaso madalas kasi naabuso ang freedom na ito. Kita ko rin na biased o may kinikilingan ang Rappler. Bakit? Agad-agaran ang minsan misleading/clickbait ang kanilang headline. Isa na diyan yung tungkol sa ordinansa umano sa QC na dapat may English/Filipino translation ang pangalan ng negosyo. Hindi nilinaw doon na ang hinahanapan lang ay mga negosyong ang pangalan ay hindi Ingles o Filipino. Kaya nauso ang mga meme na isinasa-Tagalog ang mga pangalan ng mga kilalang negosyo tulad ng mga fastfood, tindahan ng damit, at iba pa.

Sa mga balita naman ukol kay Duterte at sa kaniyang makulay na administrasyon, nang una hindi ganoon kahalata ang kanilang bias. Ngayon naman nang inaatake na sila, bina-bash ng mga DDS, naging halata na ang kanilang bias kontra-Duterte. Kaya totoo naman na walang midya na walang bias, kahit subtle man yan o kapirangot may bias (kilingan) pa rin 'yan.

Kaya sa Rappler, you have the right to due process. Use it wisely and let us see who will prevail.

Rappler, hina-harass? Inuusig?

Oo. Naniniwala akong inaatake ang Rappler ng administrasyong Duterte. Ukol sa isyu kung bakit sila nakakalusot dati sa PDRs nila, ito ang masasabi ko: "Nakalusot (sila) dati kasi hindi mahigpit, ngayong hinanapan (sila) ng butas ni Duterte kaya sila nahuli."