Section 6Sec./Art. 6

Republic Act No. 9003 is hereby further amended by inserting a new chapter after Chapter III to read as follows:

"CHAPTER III-A

EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY

"ARTICLE 1

National Framework for All Types of Product Wastes

"SEC. 44-A. National Framework for Extended Producer Responsibility. Unless otherwise provided under Article 2 of this Chapter, within three (3) months following the effectivity of the Extended Producer Responsibility Act of 2022, the Department, in consultation with the NSWMC, shall formulate a national framework on EPR for all types of product wastes. The framework shall include the following components:

"(a) Reduction of non-environment friendly products which may include the following activities and strategies:

"(1) adoption of reusable products, or redesign of the products to improve its reusability, recyclability, or retrievability;

"(2) inclusion of recycled content or recycled materials in a product;

"(3) adoption of appropriate product refilling systems for retailers;

"(4) viable reduction rates plan;

"(5) information and education campaign schemes; and

"(6) appropriate labeling of products, including the information thereon for the proper disposal of the waste product.

"(b) Product waste recovery programs aimed at effectively preventing waste from leaking to the environment, which may include the following activities:

"(1) waste recovery schemes through redemption, buy-back, offsetting, or any method or strategy that will efficiently result in the high retrievability, high recyclability, and resource recovery of waste products;

"(2) diversion of recovered waste into value chains and value-adding useful products through recycling and other sustainable methods;

"(3) transportation of recovered waste to the appropriate composting, recycling, or other diversion or disposal site in the country;

"(4) clean-up of waste leaked to coastal areas, public roads, and other sites;

"(5) establishment of commercial or industrial scale recycling, composting, thermal treatment, and other waste diversion or disposal facilities for waste products, when investment therein is viable; and

"(6) partnership with LGUs, communities, and the informal waste sectors.

"ARTICLE 2

"Extended Producer Responsibility for Plastic Packaging

"SEC. 44-B. Obliged Enterprises under this Article. Product producers obliged to implement EPR under this Article shall refer to large enterprises that generate plastic packaging waste: Provided, however, That micro, small and medium enterprises defined under Republic Act No. 9501 shall not be covered: Provided, further, That in case the total value of assets of all enterprises carrying the same brand, label or trademark exceeds that of medium enterprises stated under Republic Act No. 9501, these enterprises shall be deemed obliged enterprises.

"Notwithstanding the provisions of the immediately preceeding paragraph, micro, small, and medium enterprises are encouraged to practice EPR voluntarily, or be a part of the network of obliged enterprises or producer responsibility organizations practicing EPR.1a⍵⍴h!1

"SEC. 44-C. Plastic Packaging Covered by EPR. For the purpose of Article 2 of Chapter III-A of this Act, plastic packaging shall refer to products utilized to carry, protect, or pack goods for transportation, distribution, and sale.

"Plastic packaging shall include the following:

"(a) Sachets, labels, laminates and other flexible plastic packaging products, whether single layer or multi-layered with plastics or other materials;

"(b) Rigid plastic packaging products, whether layered with any other materials, which include containers for beverages, food, home, personal care and cosmetic products, including their coverings, caps, or lids and other necessities or promotional items, such as cutlery, plates, drinking straws, or sticks, tarps, signage, or labels;

"(c) Plastic bags, which include single-use plastic bags, for carrying or transporting of goods, and provided or utilized at the point of sale; an

"(d) Polystyrene.

"SEC. 44-D. EPR Mandates. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 44-A, obliged enterprises shall, within six (6) months following the effectivity of the Extended Producer Responsibility Act of 2022, establish or phase-in EPR programs for plastic packaging to achieve efficient management of plastic packaging waste, reduced production, importation, supply or use of plastic packaging deemed low in reusability, recyclability or retrievability, and plastic neutrality through efficient recovery and diversion schemes.

"The programs under this section may include the activities and strategies stated under paragraphs (a) and (b) of Section 44-A: Provided, That their mechanisms and strategies are submitted to the NSWMC, through the Department. Obliged enterprises shall institute an EPR program either individually or collectively, whether with or without a PRO.

"SEC. 44-E. EPR Registration. An obliged enterprise or the PRO shall register EPR programs with the NSWMC, through the Department.

"The NSWMC shall ensure that the EPR programs submitted by an obliged enterprise or PRO, as the case may be, include the following information:

"(a) Obliged enterprise or PRO information, and contact information of the person responsible for its EPR;

"(b) Specific type of packaging materials as covered by Section 44-C, and product brands;

"(c) Whether the EPR program is to be implemented individually, collectively, or through a PRO;

"(d) Verifiable volume or weight of the plastic packaging brought into the market within a specified period;

"(e) Target volume or weight of plastic packaging waste for recovery, reuse, and recycling;

"(f) Other EPR programs, such as the redesign of plastic packaging to improve reuse or recyclability;

"(g) Labeling of packaging materials to facilitate recovery, reuse, recycling or proper disposal of packaging materials;

"(h) Status of implementation of the EPR mechanisms; and

"(i) Status of compliance.

"As an initial compliance with the provisions of this section, obliged enterprises or PRO shall submit and register their EPR program to the NSWMC, through the Department, within six (6) months upon the effectivity of the Extended Producer Responsibility Act of 2022.

"The Department, through the Environmental Management Bureau, and in coordination with the NSWMC, shall monitor and evaluate the compliance of obliged enterprises or their PROs with their respective EPR programs. For this purpose, obliged enterprises or their PROs shall be required to submit annual compliance reports.

"SEC. 44-F. Compliance Period for Plastic Packaging Recovery Programs. Notwithstanding the provisions of the immediately preceding Article, and to give the obliged enterprises and PROs sufficient period to adjust to their EPR duties and responsibilities and improve their performance over time, obliged enterprises under this Article shall likewise establish and phase-in recovery programs that will achieve plastic neutrality. The programs may include the activities stated under paragraph (b) of Section 44-A.

"For this purpose, obliged enterprises that generate either rigid or flexible plastic packaging shall recover or offset their respective plastic packaging footprint.

"The following targets for the recovery of plastic product footprint generated during the immediately preceding year are hereby set:

"December 31, 2023 twenty percent (20%);

"December 31, 2024 forty percent (40%);

"December 31, 2025 fifty percent (50%);

"December 31, 2026 sixty percent (60%);

"December 31, 2027 seventy percent (70%); and

"December 31, 2028 and every year thereafter eighty percent (80%).

"For this purpose, obliged enterprises shall submit the report of their compliance including appropriate documentation to the Department.

"SEC. 44-G. Audits. Obliged enterprises or their PROs shall establish and implement an auditing system to monitor and assess their compliance performance with this Act and their EPR programs. For this purpose, the obliged enterprises or their PRO shall engage an independent third-party auditor to certify the veracity of the reported plastic product footprint generation, recovery, and EPR program compliance, using uniform standards established by the Department. The audited report shall be submitted by the obliged enterprises or their PROs to the Department.

"The certified reports on plastic product footprint generated and recovered by the obliged enterprises shall be made available to the public through the website of the Department: Provided, That a record, report, or information, or particular portion thereof deemed by the Department as confidential, shall not be made public when such would divulge trade secrets, production or sales figures, or methods and processes unique to the enterprise that would otherwise tend to adversely affect its competitive position.

"SEC. 44-H. Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO). Obliged enterprises may voluntarily organize themselves to form or authorize a PRO for the purpose of establishing a viable platform to implement their EPR program under this Article.

"For this purpose, the Department, in consultation with the NSWMC and obliged enterprises or their PRO, shall establish a system or parameters necessary to make the PRO sustainable and compliant with the purposes of this Act. These shall include standards, rules or guidelines for the following:

"(a) Organizational structure and leadership;

"(b) Membership requirements;

"(c) Duties and responsibilities, to include:

"(1) implementation parameters of the EPR program;

"(2) financing mechanisms;

"(3) cooperation mechanism with other stakeholders, waste management entities, distributors, retailers, grocery and store owners, junkshop operators, and individuals or entities in the informal sector involved in waste management; and

"(4) implementation strategies.

"(d) Setting standards towards plastic neutrality

"(e) Reporting, verification, and auditing of waste footprint generation, recovery, and diversion; an

"(f) Data collection and database maintenance.""