Environmental Issues and Management - Review Notes

Ecological Balance

  • Stable interaction among living organisms and environment
  • Essential for biodiversity, resource renewal, climate regulation

Waste Management

  • Covers collection, transfer, treatment, final disposal & monitoring of solid waste

Waste Segregation

  • Biodegradable – food, leaves; compostable
  • Non-biodegradable – plastics, glass, metals; reuse/dispose properly
  • Special waste – batteries, chemicals, paint, medicines; hazardous handling

3Rs

  • Reduce – conserve resources, minimize waste generation
  • Reuse – extend product life, use own containers
  • Recycle – convert discarded items to new products

Republic Act 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act 2000)

  • Mandates segregation, recycling, composting; bans littering, open burning/dumping, mixing recyclables with waste, toxic-waste importation
  • Assigns LGU, household, business duties; requires local SWM programs

Ongoing Issues

  • \text{NIMBY} mindset – concern ends at property line
  • Insufficient municipal funds for full SWM systems
  • Limited legal disposal options → dumpsites piling up

Consequences of Mismanaged Waste

  • Severe flooding, disease outbreaks, coral-reef death, environmental pollution

Mining & Quarrying

  • Mining – extraction of metallic & non-metallic minerals (nickel, gold, coal, etc.)
  • Quarrying – removal of stone, sand, gravel via blasting/drilling

Industry Snapshot (PH)

  • World’s top nickel producer; 28^{th} in gold supply
  • Contribution to GDP (Q4 2012): 0.2\% only

Benefits

  • Employment, export earnings (e.g., PHP 144.4 B minerals, 2010), infrastructure raw materials

Negative Impacts

  • Pollution (dust, tailings) → respiratory illness
  • Habitat & biodiversity loss; landscape instability → landslides, flooding, soil nutrient loss
  • Water contamination; quarry waste harms rivers & seas

Major Disaster

  • Marcopper 1996: tailings spill → river poisoning, farmland ruin, persistent flooding

Key Laws & Policies

  • RA 7942 (1995) – Philippine Mining Act: environmental & social safeguards, industry obligations
  • Executive Order 79 (2012) – institutional reforms, responsible mining guidelines

Deforestation

  • Permanent forest removal for agriculture, ranching, housing, logging, raw-material extraction, kaingin (slash-and-burn)

Outcomes

  • Carbon release, habitat loss, soil degradation, disrupted water cycle

Flash Floods

  • Rapid flooding within minutes–hours due to heavy rain, dam/levee failure, blocked waterways

Causes

  • Clogged drainage, urbanization, ongoing deforestation, Arctic ice melt from global warming

Effects

  • Crop/fishery damage, transport disruption, disease (e.g., leptospirosis), widespread debris deposition

Government Measures (Forests & Floods)

  • Reforestation programs; WWF involvement
  • RA 9175 (2002) Chain Saw Act – regulates chainsaw use
  • RA 7586 (1992) NIPAS – classifies & protects key areas
  • PD 1152 (1986) Philippine Environment Code – maintains air quality
  • Public campaigns: Reduce-Reuse-Recycle

COVID-19

  • Viral respiratory disease; spread via droplets (cough/sneeze)
  • First PH case confirmed 30\,\text{Jan}\,2020 (38-yo female from Wuhan)

Major Effects

  • Education – prolonged school closures; UNICEF urges immediate face-to-face resumption
  • Economy – GDP rebounded >7\% in Q3 2021
  • Health – vaccination critical; DOH & Red Cross drive campaigns
  • Environment – call for eco-friendly, biodegradable PPE (e.g., abaca masks)

Key Laws & Responses

  • RA 11469 (Bayanihan 1, Mar 2020) – national health emergency powers
  • RA 11494 (Bayanihan 2, Sep 2020) – economic recovery & health measures
  • RA 11332 (2019) – strengthens disease surveillance & inter-agency coordination