Environment group gives tips for ‘trash-free’ Holy Week 2019

MANILA, Philippines – Environment group EcoWaste Coalition on Saturday, April 13, called for a zero-waste observance of Holy Week, saying it was the “perfect time” to reflect on wastefulness.

“The Holy Week provides an opportunity for all people to act, individually and collectively, to promote environmental awareness and responsibility, especially in the way we use resources and treat our surroundings,” said EcoWaste Coalition campaigner Ochie Tolentino in a statement on Saturday.

The group urged Filipinos to “break from wasteful habits” that destroy communities and ecosystems. (READ: How to kickstart a zero waste lifestyle without spending on new things)

“As faith without works is dead, we ask all to perform acts of mercy and kindness toward Mother Earth that will prevent and reduce the generation of wastes and other pollutants, especially during the holy days and beyond,” Tolentino said.

EcoWaste Coalition gave the following tips for an eco-friendly observance of the Holy Week:

1. Abandon acts that defile and pollute the environment such as littering, dumping and burning of discards.
2. Keep all activities lead-safe: shun candles with lead-cored wicks and paints with lead content. 
3. Cut emissions by taking public transport, biking or walking for the Visita Iglesia, on Maundy Thursday, April 18.
4. Use recycled materials for the makeshift huts for the traditional Pabasa or the Reading of the Passion of Christ.
5. For the traditional giving or sharing of food called Caridad, shun disposable paper or plastic and opt for reusable containers.
6. Ensure a litter-free pilgrimage to the Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Cathedral in Antipolo City, Rizal, the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan, as well as other shrines.
7. Green the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) by collecting litter along the way.
8. Decorate the floats for the Santo Entierro (Holy Interment) on Good Friday, April 19, with energy-efficient and mercury-free LED lamps and with locally-produced flowers and plants.
9. Welcome the Risen Christ on Easter Sunday, April 21, without lighting firecrackers and fireworks and without releasing balloons.
10. Keep Easter fun games and activities for kids simple and not wasteful.
11. Donate used clothes and other items of service to the Segunda Mana charity program of Caritas Manila.
12. Quiet down and opt for “staycation” at home for a meaningful bonding time with family members.
13. For those going out of the city for their summer vacation, make your trip plastic-free, trash-free: “take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints, kill nothing but time.”

 – Rappler.com

See the Holy Week schedules here:

• Traffic advisory for Holy Week 2019
• MRT and LRT schedules for Holy Week 2019
• Mall schedules for Holy Week 2019