(Photo courtesy : EcoWaste Coalition)
An environmental watchdog is urging church leaders, barangay officials, and devotees to rethink the growing use of plastic banderitas in upcoming Santo Niño festivities, warning that the practice could further worsen Manila’s mounting garbage problem.
The call was made by EcoWaste Coalition as communities in Tondo and Pandacan prepare for the annual Feast of the Santo Niño, a celebration that draws thousands of devotees each year. Tondo is home to the revered Santo Niño de Tondo, while Pandacan hosts the Santo Niño de Pandacan, both of which are focal points of weekend-long religious activities.
During recent monitoring, the group observed streets and alleys already lined with buntings and garlands made from disposable plastics, including newly purchased plastic “labo,” freshly cut plastic strips, and various plastic scraps. According to EcoWaste Coalition, the decorations are multiplying rapidly as preparations intensify.
“Plastic banderitas are sprouting everywhere in Tondo and Pandacan, almost as if communities are competing to see who can put up the longest, most numerous, and most extravagant display,” said Ochie Tolentino, the group’s Zero Waste campaigner. He warned that the trend mirrors the widespread use of plastic tarpaulins during past election periods.
Tolentino said the unchecked use of plastic decorations could add to the already serious waste challenges faced by the City of Manila. He noted that what appears festive today will soon become garbage, contributing to the volume of waste hauled to the New San Mateo Sanitary Landfill in Rizal.
The group described single-use plastic banderitas as “litter in the sky,” stressing that they have no lasting aesthetic, practical, or spiritual value and are destined for disposal once the celebrations end. EcoWaste Coalition appealed to parish priests and barangay officials to exercise their authority by discouraging what it called a non-essential and wasteful practice.
“This goes against the effort to stop plastic pollution from harming our ecosystems and even our own bodies,” Tolentino said. “Every disposable banderita takes us a step further away from the zero-waste, toxics-free future we are trying to build.”
The warning comes as cleanup crews are still dealing with the aftermath of the recent Traslacion in Luneta and Quiapo, where truckloads of trash were collected. The group said authorities are now bracing for another surge in waste as Santo Niño celebrations unfold across the city.
EcoWaste Coalition also linked its appeal to broader church-backed environmental commitments. It noted that reducing plastic pollution is among the six ecological actions adopted by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines during its 128th Plenary Assembly in 2024. The bishops had earlier emphasized ecological responsibility in their 2019 pastoral letter, An Urgent Call for Ecological Conversion, which echoed the principles of Laudato Si by Pope Francis on caring for the environment.
The group also expressed hope that the church-led convergence Hayuma: Mending the Broken, scheduled from January 14 to 16, 2026 at the University of Santo Tomas, will further strengthen calls for ecological conversion and practical action toward waste reduction.
As Santo Niño festivities approach, EcoWaste Coalition said the celebration of faith should go hand in hand with care for creation, adding that moving away from single-use plastics is a simple but meaningful step toward a truly joyful and sustainable fiesta.
