Eco-waste group urges emission-free New Year celebration

The non-government organization Eco Waste Coalition is urging the public not to use firecrackers, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes or burn tires to welcome the New Year because these could harm the environment.

"The senseless injuries and deaths from year-end revelry is certainly not the way to scare off evil spirits and usher in good tiding to people’s doorsteps. Blasting firecrackers, PVC toy guns or cannons and other dirty noisemakers only aggravate the already poor air quality. There is surely a better way to greet the New Year without the habitual contamination of our fragile environment," Eco Waste coordinator Rei Panaligan said.

Environmental groups have called for the phaseout of PVC products, claiming that its additives — chemical stabilizers such as lead, cadmium and phthalate plasticizers — leak from the product over time, raising the risk of asthma, lead poisoning and cancer.

The Eco Waste Coalition also asked Health Secretary Francisco Duque III to issue an advisory against PVC pipes which, starting last year, have been used as improvised cannons with the use of denatured alcohol.

These PVC cannons became popular and were used in ushering in the year 2006. The Department of Health (DOH), however, registered several cases of injuries, particularly involving the eyes, caused by the PVC version of the traditional bamboo cannon.

Panaligan noted that because of the "potential harm" that PVC cannons could cause, the DOH should start discouraging the public from using the device.