"Trash or garbage itself has an apparently negative connotation. As the Philippine Senator Panfilo Lacson said, it has something to do with national dignity. By sending trash to the Philippines, Philippine dignity and identity are being disregarded and debased," he told Xinhua in a written interview.
RAMPANT TECHNICAL SMUGGLING
It's a long-existed issue that foreign countries, especially developed countries, keep exporting hazardous waste to the Philippines. Environmental experts say importers of foreign garbage falsely declared by private firms as recyclable plastic scraps.
Reynaldo San Juan, the deputy executive director of local environmental group Ban Toxics told Xinhua that "technical smuggling" of waste is "quite rampant" in the Philippines.
"It is a widespread practice and is used as a common tool to bypass customs officials to allow contraband items, such as the Canadian trash," he said.
"This practice continues because of money. It is cheaper to dispose of the waste in developing countries like the Philippines, where labor is cheap, environmental and health regulations are difficult to enforce. Thus, rich countries take advantage of their economic position to leverage poorer countries to accept the waste, in the guise of recycling," he said.
San Juan said "poorer countries need to provide jobs to its people, and they think recycling toxic waste or harmful garbage is a way to generate jobs. It is unfortunately a misguided policy that is pushed by countries like Canada."
【国际英语资讯:News Analysis: Diplomatic spat escalates over Philippines, Canada trash row】相关文章:
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