Plastic bag ordinance revived in City Council

CEBU City Councilor Nida Cabrera is refiling her proposed ordinance that would regulate the use of plastic bags in the city.

She first filed the measure early this year but withdrew it after majority of her peers said the city was not prepared a ban on plastic shopping bags.

After holding consultations, Cabrera said she is ready to file a revised version.

She said she discussed the issue with mall managers, market vendors, retailers, and business groups in June11 to make sure that provisions in the draft ordinance are acceptable.

Another public hearing will be called on July 25.

Provisions that were objected by her colleagues in the City Council have been removed or revised, Cabrera said.

“The revised version will be easier to implement if approved,” she said.

Discarded plastics that end up in sewers and drainage canals are a major cause of street flooding during the rainy season.

Other major cities nationwide have already passed plastic bag ordinances like Quezon, Makati, Marikina, Cagayan de Oro and Davao.

Interest in regulating the use of plastics was heightened after typhoon Ondoy submerged parts of Metro Manila.

If the ordinance is approved, the Cebu City’s Natural Resources Office and the Cebu Environmental Sanitation and Enforcement Team will be tasked to enforce it.

Proposed fines of P2, 000 to P5, 000 and imprisonment of six months to one year are penalties of the draft ordinance.

Violators also face the e possible cancellation of a business establishment’s permit.