Locals residing in Tubigon town can swap a kilo of shredded plastic wrappers in exchange for a kilo of rice, a program that the municipal government reported has decreased blockage within the town’s drainage system.
Shredded Plastic and Rice in Tubigon
The municipal initiative in Tubigon pairs everyday waste collection with food security. Residents bring in shredded plastic wrappers and receive rice in return.
Once collected, these shredded plastics travel to a private facility. Workers there heat-press the material into construction panel boards, plastic lumber, ceiling panels, and non-load-bearing wall cladding.
Bohol Waste Management Summit 2026
Tubigon’s program was among the local initiatives showcased at the Bohol Solid Waste Management Summit 2026. The provincial government’s Ecological Solid Waste Management Program organized the gathering in Tagbilaran City.
The annual summit unites the provincial government, municipalities, national agencies, businesses, and civil society groups. Participants share practices in waste segregation, composting, recycling, resource recovery, safe disposal, and reducing single-use plastics.
Bohol’s waste management policy follows Republic Act No. 9003, also known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. This law requires local governments to transition from collecting mixed garbage to segregation, recycling, and composting.
Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado reconstituted and expanded the Provincial Ecological Solid Waste Management Board through Executive Order No. 38, signed Dec. 26, 2025. This order aims to coordinate waste efforts across the entire province.
Enforcing the Extended Producer Responsibility Act to reduce waste
Local actions across Bohol support national campaigns to keep plastic waste out of waterways. The Marcos administration is enforcing the Extended Producer Responsibility Act of 2022. This legislation requires large companies to recover a rising share of their plastic packaging waste, a target reaching 60% this year, according to Malacañang. Malacañang said the enforcement aims in part to keep garbage from clogging drainage and pumping facilities.
Did You Know? At the town’s eco park and recycling facility in Jagna, personnel process shredded plastic bottles and crushed glass into cobblestones and bricks.
Processing discarded materials into construction products and bags
Other towns in Bohol have also developed processing methods for discarded materials. At the town’s eco park and recycling facility in Jagna, personnel process shredded plastic bottles and crushed glass into cobblestones and bricks.
Jagna also sells its plastic waste to a cement plant in Cebu. The plant burns the plastic as fuel in place of part of the coal or petroleum coke its kilns traditionally use.
How the rice-for-plastic exchange works
How does the Tubigon rice-for-plastic exchange work?
Residents in Tubigon town trade a kilo of shredded plastic wrappers for a kilo of rice. The municipal government said that this exchange has successfully reduced clogging in the town’s drainage system.
What happens to the collected plastic after it leaves Tubigon?
The shredded plastics go to a private facility where workers heat-press them into construction panel boards, plastic lumber, ceiling panels, and non-load-bearing wall cladding.
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