MANILA—Senator Loren Legarda called on the public to translate environmental policies into tangible community action as the country marks National Clean-up Month this September under Proclamation No. 244 s. 1993, complemented by Presidential Proclamation No. 470 s. 2003 which designates every third Saturday of September as International Coastal Clean-up (ICC) Day in the Philippines.

“As the principal author and principal sponsor of the Climate Change Act of 2009 (RA 9729), and author and principal sponsor of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 (RA 9003), I have seen that laws only bring real change when people embrace them,” Legarda said.

“This September, let us rise to the challenge. Protecting our environment demands more than compliance; it requires unity, urgency, and daily commitment. Let us turn this moment into a movement toward a cleaner and more resilient Philippines,” she added.

Citing Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) data, Legarda said the Philippines generates around 61,000 metric tons of solid waste daily, 12 to 24 percent of which is plastic. Each Filipino consumes an average of 20 kilograms of plastic per year, with 15.4 kilograms ending up as waste—making the country the world’s top contributor to ocean plastic pollution at 36 percent of global marine waste.

She noted that last year’s ICC collected 352,479 kilograms of trash from 250 sites nationwide in a single day.

“These numbers are visible scars,” Legarda warned. “Flooding and mass displacement are no longer isolated events; these are symptoms of clogged waterways, deforested uplands, and years of poor waste management. The effects of pollution and climate change are not distant threats; they are happening in the present and are costing Filipino lives.”

Legarda reaffirmed her call for stronger enforcement and innovative planning, citing Senate Bill No. 1250 which seeks to create an Environmental Protection and Enforcement Bureau (EPEB) under the DENR, and Senate Bill No. 1251 or the Philippine Environmental Assessment System Act, aimed at modernizing environmental governance through Strategic Environmental Assessment, Environmental Impact Assessment, and Health Impact Assessment.

“Legislation alone won’t solve our environmental challenges,” she emphasized. “We need public participation, local innovation, and sustained community action. Environmental laws are not just words on paper; they are tools for transformation. The real change begins when we take ownership of the laws meant to protect us.”