SBMA to promote ‘junk art’ in 10th recyclable collection event

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) will encourage the youth in the Subic Bay community to turn waste products into junk art, a contemporary art subgenre that uses found objects as art materials, in the upcoming 10th Recyclables Collection Event (RCE).

SBMA Ecology Center manager Amethya dela Llana said the upcycling project, aptly named “From Scrap to Craft”, will use wastes collected from coastal and river clean-up other recycling activities and convert them into junk art.

“Thrash are just resources out of place. And with this project, we can show the community that certain materials that we normally throw away could be turned into art pieces that would not just be Instagram-worthy but could even be sold for extra income,” Dela Llana said.

She said the SBMA will also provide cash prizes for the best “From Scrap to Craft” entries to encourage more participants and introduce the idea that upcycling could be profitable and worth their time.

The junk art contest is just one part of the 10^th RCE, which is scheduled on November 15 to 19. With the theme “REFUSE. REDUCE. REUSE. RECYCLE. REPURPOSE”, the event will feature various activities that promote waste reduction and segregation, teach proper collection and disposal of recyclables and hazardous wastes, and increase awareness in waste management.

Dela Llana said the SBMA has been organizing recyclables collection as a bi-annual event in the Subic Bay Freeport with the cooperation of business locators, residents, government agencies and private groups.

Another component of the upcoming RCE is the “Refill Revolution for a Cause”, which will be a bazaar sale of cleaning products. Stakeholders can buy detergent, laundry soap, fabric conditioner, dishwashing liquid, and hand soap by the bulk, but they need to bring their own containers, Dela Lllana added.

Accredited haulers and hazardous waste handlers will also collect PET bottles, cartons, scrap metals, newspapers, and aluminum cans; plastic packaging from online and retail stores; glass bottles; wastes from electronics and electrical equipment; biomedical wastes; used oils and oil-contaminated materials; used lead acid batteries; busted fluorescent/lamp bulbs; empty containers; inks and dyes; paint sludge; as well as expired make-up.

The RCE will also be a venue for an information, education and communication campaign on waste management to be conducted by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and ABS-CBN’s Bantay Kalikasan.

Meanwhile, partner groups Subic Bay Freeport Chamber of Commerce and RP Energy, Inc. will also use the event as a springboard for assistance to local schools and Sangguniang Kabataan units in the neighboring communities of Olongapo City, Zambales and Bataan.

Dela Llana said the various activities under RCE are crucial interventions to protect the local environment and help promote health and wellness among Subic stakeholders.

The Philippines ranked third in 2015 among the highest sources of plastic pollution in global waters, after China and Indonesia, DENR records show. It is estimated that 31.9 million metric tons of plastic pollution are produced around the world each year, and about a quarter of that volume ends up in bodies of water. (MPD-SBMA) 

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Subic to host Miss Philippines-World finals with full health-safety protocols

The Miss World Philippines coronation night will be held here tomorrow at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center (SBECC) with full safety protocols following full endorsement for the event to proceed from the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the pageant’s final ceremony here was only approved after rigorous vetting of Covid-19 health procedures and subsequent assurances by organizers that they will strictly follow protocols set by the IATF.

“This will be another bubble event like the other ones Subic had hosted for basketball and volleyball tournaments, as well as some national conferences,” Eisma said.

“The SBMA Board approved the request of ALV Event International, Inc., the organizer of the Miss World Philippines, to have the event here in Subic only after the Regional Task Force (RTF3) conducted an online coordination meeting with us and the organizers,” she added.

Eisma said among the requirements set were: full vaccination of all attendees; conduct of daily antigen tests, including guests, during the pageant; 24-hour posting of marshals with placards to act as health and safety protocol checkers, along with usherettes; and daily health declarations/reports with QR-coded IDs for contact tracing.

“Aside from the 44 candidates, there will also be guests and members of the organizing committee who will be taking part in the event. And we all want them to contain themselves for the duration of the event,” Eisma added.

“We’d like to stress here that we have set a 1:30 marshal-guests ratio to ensure enforcement of health protocols and that there will be only 800 attendees in a 5,000-capacity venue,” she also said.

Meanwhile, Miss World Philippines national director Arnold Vegafria expressed his gratitude for the approval to stage the coronation night at the SBECC.

He said that his promotion submitted its proposal to SBMA to stage the coronation night in Subic on September 21 and received r3ecommendation from the SBMA board of directors four days later after thoroughly establishing required safety measures.

“Rest assured that all IATF and SBMA health protocols will be strictly enforced by our EWP medical director-in-charge as recommended in the SBMA Board resolution,” he added.

The coronation night will feature 44 candidates vying for seven crowns in the pageant. These are titles for Miss World Philippines, Miss Eco Philippines, Miss Eco Teen Philippines, Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas, Miss Multinational, Miss Philippines Tourism, and Miss Environment International.

The Miss World Philippines pageant, which is one of the most prestigious beauty pageants in the country, is on its 10th edition this year. (MPD-SBMA)

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