SMOKESTACKS spewing black clouds and factories disgorging fetid wastewater into rivers and lakes are among the images that come to mind when we hear the word “pollution.”
Like smokestacks, motor vehicles emit greenhouse gases that cause global warming, which, according to a former World Bank chief economist, could in the next decade cost the world up to $6.98 trillion if governments fail to take bold actions.
There are other sources of pollution. Fast food restaurants have been accused of choking our creeks with their ubiquitous plastic and Styrofoam packaging. Households also contribute to the pollution of our waterways. Even local government units have been flogged for their inadequate waste disposal facilities.
These conditions led to initiatives that encourage manufacturers and end-users to contribute to environment-responsive programs worldwide. One such program is Ecolabelling.
Ecolabelling is based on the ISO 14020 series on environmental standards for products and services. Manufacturers who declare the environmental preferability of their products on their own practice the first type of ecolabelling.
Those who submit their products for third party verification practice the third type of ecolabelling. Their products are awarded seals of approval if found to have been manufactured using environmentally preferable materials and procedures.
In the country, the National Ecolabelling Program is called Green Choice-Philippines. It invited industry members, government agencies, members of the academe, environmentalists and consumer groups to become members of its pool of experts. They began drafting environmental product criteria used as guides in determining whether a product is environmentally preferable or not.
To date, they have approved environmental product criteria for laundry detergents, tissue paper, plastic packaging materials, household batteries, automotive engine oils, fire extinguishers, crayons and cement.
