MARINE LITTER 101: How and why are we involved?
By: Engr. Aubrey Bianca Navarro
On a somber afternoon of August 28, 2021, chemical engineers, and other professionals alike, have gathered online via Zoom to have an engaging session tackling “Marine Litter 101 and the National Plan of Action on Marine Litter (NPOA-ML)”. This webinar was also livestreamed via PICHE CAMANAVA’s Facebook account so that others who couldn’t register beforehand can still join in on the fun.
The speaker who livened everyone’s day (introduced by Engr. Simonette Fajardo – Technical Committee Member of PIChE CAMANAVA), was Engr. Voltaire L. Acosta – a specialist in Environmental Engineering and Resource-efficient production. He obtained his BS Chemical Engineering degree from Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, cum laude, in 1999. In 2000, he took the Licensure Exams for Chemical Engineers and was the First Place Board Topnotcher. He has also completed his Masters degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of the Philippines at Diliman in 2006 and was inducted to the International Honor Societies of Pi Gamma Mu and Phi Kappa Phi. To further his professional development, he took certificate courses on “Public Policy Development and Analysis” from the Ateneo de Manila School of Government; “Solid Waste Management Engineering” from the International Institute for Infrastructure, Hydraulics and Environmental Engineering (UNESCO-IHE)-Delft in The Netherlands; and the Leadership Track of the Massive Open Online Course on Marine Litter at the Open University of the Netherlands. Currently, he is the Project Manager of the Healthy Oceans and Clean Cities Initiative of United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).
Through this webinar, PIChE CAMANAVA shows its support on the Philippine government’s initiative to manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems from pollution and to create awareness on the new NPOA-ML. The session was adequately divided into segments for clear deliverance:
a. Definition, characterization, and identification of different Marine Litter sources
b. Discussion on where marine debris typically comes from
and how it commonly finds its way into the marine environment
c. Explanation of the effects of marine litter on animals, humans, vessels, and habitats
d. Discussion regarding plastic value chain challenges
e. Explanation on how our own behavior and activities contribute to the marine debris problem and what are the needed behavioral change towards proper solid waste management
f. Brief Overview of the National Plan of Action on Marine Litter (NPOA-ML)
After Engr. Acosta’s passionate sharing, the moderator – Engr. Sheila Flor D. Javier (Technical Committee Director, PIChE CAMANAVA) opened the floor for Question and Answer. Surprisingly, the Q&A session turns out to be more like an ‘open forum’ as other government representatives (e.g. from Philippine Coast Guard, PEZA, DILG and DOST) also coined in their thoughts on what and how the government does their ‘role’ on eliminating or reducing marine litter in the Philippines, aside from the speaker’s input and other clarifications on the participants’ challenging queries.
Before closing the webinar, Engr. Joshua Bon Roco (PIChE CAMANAVA President), gave his own synthesis on this issue and thanked everyone for participating, as well as for the great interaction. Of course, a photo session was done to commemorate this fruitful event, which was evident from the radiant smiles of all participants.
It was two hours’ worth of technical talk, but everyone’s attention seems to be hooked; all the participants in Zoom, 100 at its peak, stayed from beginning to end. Fortunately, there would be more of this in the future and the organization is looking forward to catering more professionals on having knowledge-filled sessions that everyone can enjoy.
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