Dumaguete eyes buying plastic shredder

By Rachelle M. Nessia

DUMAGUETE CITY, March 19 (PIA) – The city government will strictly enforce the plastic ordinance in August, even as it has already started the bidding process for the procurement of plastic shredder, said City Administrator William Ablong in a recent forum here.

The plastic ordinance was enacted to regulate and reduce the use of plastic in Dumaguete City, which has been blamed for aggravating floods during the recent typhoons that hit the city.

The ordinance bans vendors from providing shoppers with a second plastic bag as secondary packaging material for wet goods. For purchased dry goods, customers will not be given a plastic bag as packaging at all, but are instead expected to bring their own bag when they shop.

“Plastic is clogging our canals and (contributes to climate change) when we burn it,” said Ablong.

Ablong said a team from the city government went to Bacolod City to inspect the plastic shredder used there, after which they are expected to submit an inspection report on which the awarding of the bidding will be based on.

Overused and worn out plastic bags will be shredded and converted into usable plastic items, said Ablong.

Residents will have to bring their plastic items to their barangay’s material recovery facility, where the plastic will be segregated for shredding.

The shredder works by pulverizing plastic materials. The resulting powder can then be converted into other plastic items, floorwax, tiles and other construction materials, said Ablong.

Paper and carton can also be fed into the shredder. “The powdered form can be converted into charcoal and provide us with an alternative source to firewood and gas,” he added. (RMN/PIA Negros Oriental)