Netizens express concern over trash during Manila eco marathon

A netizen and graduate from the University of the Philippines expressed her concern over the amount of trash generated by a marathon recently held at the SM Mall of Asia.

Romina Lim took to Facebook to raise her concerns about the paper and plastic cups thrown away by runners during the "NatGeo Earth Day Run 2017" last Sunday, April 23. The NatGeo Run is an annual marathon which aims to raise awareness on protecting the earth.

Lim's post quickly grew traction, even as it earned, as of posting time, more than 5,000 likes, over 3,000 shares, and more than 700 comments, with commenters echoing her concerns. "Earth Day gone wrong," read one comment.

Videos of the littered venue have since surfaced.

"With the thousands of registrants, more than thousands of cups were used only to be thrown away right after drinking. This left trash scattered throughout the road. Fortunately, there were people who painstakingly cleaned up after the event," Lim said in her Facebook post. 

"The routes were situated beside Manila Bay. It is possible that some cups will be blown away and end up in the sea. I'm not saying that there's a high chance of getting blown away into the sea. I'm just saying that it is possible," Lim added. 

She explained that just like plastic cups, paper cups could also take years to decompose. She noted that these cups could be "ingested by sea animals" if they would be blown to the sea. 

In a Facebook message, Lim said this was not the first time that it happened. 

"Every year nalang may ganito and every year people complain and every year they're ignored. Hopefully this year makinig na ang organizers," Lim told GMA News Online. 

"Pero hindi ko naman sinisingle out ang NatGeo Run, maraming other fun runs na ganito. Pero disappointing lang dahil I expected the NatGeo Run to practice what it preaches, eh siya pa itong nagggegenerate ng trash," Lim said. 

Lim, meanwhile, claimed that paper cups were not a "greener alternative" to plastic cups. 

"As mentioned, higher demand means more production. Higher production requires more water and energy to be consumed, and this increases emissions of carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change. If you think that paper cups are the greener alternative, production of paper cups consumes 4 times the energy and 3 times the amount of water used in producing plastic cups," Lim said. 

Lim, instead, suggested the "Bring Your Own Bottle" campaign in running events like this. 

"Bringing a bottle while running is a small sacrifice compared to the earth we'll sacrifice just for our convenience. Also, there can be alternatives to bottles e.g. hydration pack or hydration belts which you can also suggest to your runners for their convenience," she said. 

She noted that this campaign was already done in past marathons such as Run for the Pasig River, Citytrail Manila, and Clark Runway Color Fun Run. 

Lim pointed how bringing your own bottles could help save the environment, and could also save runners some time because they would no longer need to regularly stop at water stations. 

On the part of organizers, they no longer have to spend on disposable cups or require individuals to clean up the venue after the event.

Lim hoped organizers of similar events and local government units issuing permits for them would learn from the incident.

"'Yon talaga ang ultimate goal ko, hindi lang mag-rant but actually do something about it and actually make a change," Lim said. 

Meanwhile, Lim praised the runners who used their own bottles and those who disposed their trash properly. 

She said the incident, at least, raised awareness on the drawbacks of such environment-related activities.

"Pinamulat niya mga mata natin that we still have a long way to go. Pinakita niya 'yong ugali ng mga tao. Pinakita niya na for some people, it's okay pa rin to litter just because somebody else will clean it up. Pinakita niya na marami pa rin hindi environmentally aware," she said. 

"Pero pinakita din niya na after the incident, marami talaga may pake sa environment at may pag-asa pa tayong magbago. Maraming naging aware at maraming na-educate after what happened," Lim added.

GMA News Online is still trying to reach comment from NatGeo Run regarding the matter.

On its official webpage, NatGeo states that the marathon's main beneificary would be the Ipo watershed, even as it aims to "rehabilitate and enhance existing forests and wetlands, and not just the reforestation of denuded areas." — Anna Felicia Bajo/MDM, GMA News