Newly Elected LGU Leaders Urged to Champion the People’s Right to a Clean and Sustainable Environment

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Quezon City, 30 June 2025 — As a new wave of local government officials assumes office across the Philippines, a powerful call to action echoes from the nation’s most passionate environmental defenders: Hit the ground running and protect the people’s fundamental right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.

Civil society organizations under the EcoWaste Coalition didn’t mince words as they issued a rallying cry for bold, urgent, and uncompromising environmental leadership. At the forefront of this call is a demand for local officials to rise above politics and bureaucracy and instead harness their full authority, mandate, and resources to combat the intensifying triple planetary crisis—pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss.

“We are in a defining moment,” declared Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator of the EcoWaste Coalition. “We challenge our newly elected LGU leaders to be the stewards of ecological integrity by fully enforcing our environmental laws—from solid waste management to climate resilience—while engaging citizens every step of the way.”

Lucero pointed to major environmental mandates such as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act (RA 9003), Clean Air Act (RA 8749), Clean Water Act (RA 9275), and Climate Change Act (RA 9729) as cornerstones of local governance. She urged leaders to implement these statutes not merely as obligations but as lifelines for future generations.

From Luzon to Mindanao, voices from the grassroots to academic institutions chimed in with urgency and conviction:

Sonia Mendoza, Chair of the Mother Earth Foundation, emphasized the necessity of enforcing ESWM laws and local ordinances, particularly those banning single-use plastics. “Impose fines. Demand compliance. Let’s stop treating laws like mere suggestions,” she said.

Rene Pineda of the Partnership for Clean Air called for full implementation of RA 9003, the promotion of social enterprises in waste management, and public audits to ensure funds are used effectively. “Every peso spent on waste management must serve the people—not pad pockets,” he asserted.

Neneng Lava of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement advocated for improved waste segregation, efficient garbage collection, and operational Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs). “We need to make reuse a cultural habit, not a mere campaign slogan,” she added.

Meanwhile, in Cebu, the group Action for Nurturing Children and Environment (ANCE) demanded strict waste segregation enforcement, regular garbage pickup, and zero tolerance for open dumping.

From the southern cities of Cagayan de Oro and Davao, associations of community-based waste collectors called for intensified ESWM efforts at the barangay level, recognizing that true environmental protection begins at the grassroots.

Academic voices also joined the movement. Carmela Marie Santos of Ecoteneo, Ateneo de Davao University, called for a rejection of waste-to-energy incineration schemes and urged LGUs to embrace zero waste solutions, reduce plastic consumption, expand green spaces, and restore vital ecosystems. “Let’s bring back the fireflies and the breath of clean air to our cities,” she said. “A livable city is not one filled with malls, but with trees, clean rivers, and safe paths for children to bike.”

Echoing these sentiments, Caritas Philippines underscored the moral imperative of ecological justice. “Zero waste, watershed protection, and climate resilience must be top priorities,” stated Jing Rey Henderson, National Head of Integral Ecology. “We must reject incineration and fossil fuel dependency, and uplift sustainable livelihoods and renewable energy solutions.”

Henderson also stressed the importance of inclusive governance. “Our leaders must protect the rights of waste workers, environmental defenders, and indigenous peoples. There can be no environmental justice without transparency, public participation, and accountability,” he asserted.

In a unified voice, the EcoWaste Coalition and its member groups called on LGU leaders to lead with integrity, act decisively, and place the welfare of the people and the planet above political convenience. The message is clear: this is not the time for hesitation or half-measures.

“As these new leaders take office, the Filipino people are watching—and hoping,” Lucero concluded. “Let them be remembered not for promises made during the campaign, but for the lasting, life-giving changes they dared to make from Day One.”

This article was written in collaboration with the EcoWaste Coalition and its member organizations, dedicated to advancing a zero-waste future and ecological justice across the Philippines.

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