Filipino villagers swap trash for rice in fight against plastics

123rf

In a bid to fight plastic wastage, a village in the Philippines is offering its residents rice in exchange for their trash.

That's right. Residents of Bayanan can get one kilo of rice for every two kilos of plastic waste they deposit. The trash is then handed over to the government for proper disposal or recycling. 

In fact, the village collected more than 213 kg of plastic sachets, bottles and bags in August.

Village chief Andor San Pedro said the food-for-trash swap is teaching people how to properly dispose of plastic waste.

The Southeast Asian nation is among the world's top marine plastic polluters, studies show, with laws on solid waste poorly enforced.

 

More from International News

  • Israeli airstrikes kill 11 in Gaza, Palestinians say

    At least 11 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the northern and southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian civil defence and health officials said, in what Israel's military called a response to Hamas ceasefire violations.

  • Rubio visits eastern Europe to bolster ties

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio began a two-day trip to eastern Europe on Sunday to bolster ties with Slovakia and Hungary, whose conservative leaders, often at odds with other European Union countries, have warm ties with President Donald Trump.

  • New Zealand braces for more flooding after road collapses, one death

    New Zealand's weather forecaster on Sunday warned more flooding could hit the country's North Island, a day after floods caused power outages, road collapses, home evacuations and was linked to the death of a man whose vehicle was submerged on a highway.

  • Rubio tells Munich security forum US, Europe belong together

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a message of unity to Europeans on Saturday, saying Washington does not intend to abandon the transatlantic alliance, but that Europe's leaders had made a number of policy mistakes and need to change course.

Coming Up