With the use of plastic straws and stirrers coming to an end soon, a member at the House of Representative urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to debate the “excessive” usage of plastic packaging among e-commerce platforms.

House Bill 546, filed by Muntinlupa Representative Ruffy Biazon, orders the phase-out of single-use plastics.

“The new normal has made online shopping the norm. But the amount of plastic waste is worrying,” Biazon said.

“The volume of this plastic waste is staggering, what with the popularity of online shopping. In fact, Lazada has reported that during the first hour of the 11.11 sale alone, over 2 million items were purchased by Filipino consumers,” he added.

E-commerce platforms such as Lazada and Shopee attracted more Filipino online shoppers during the lockdown.

While local e-commerce apps use plastic packaging, American e-commerce site Amazon does not use bubble wrap nor plastic tape, just cardboard boxes.