EcoWaste Coalition Honors Resource Collectors for their Role in Protecting Community Health and Environment (Bagong Silangan resource collectors in QC repaint ‘kolong-kolong’ with lead safe paints)

LEAD-FREE ON FREEDOM DAY: To celebrate the country’s 126th Independence Day and to honor community waste collectors for their environmental service, the EcoWaste Coalition partnered with the Bagong Silangan Resource Collectors’ Association (BASIRCA) in Quezon City for the repainting of their “kolong-kolongs,” an improvised vehicle for transporting recyclables, using lead-safe Triton paints.

12 June 2024, Quezon City. To celebrate the nation’s 126th Independence Day, the EcoWaste Coalition honored the women and men of the Bagong Silangan Resource Collectors’ Association (BASIRCA) by giving their “kolong-kolongs” a fresh coat of lead safe paints.

The “kolong-kolong” is a bicycle or motorcycle with an attached side car made of welded steel bars. BASIRCA members use the “kolong-kolong” for carrying the valuable waste resources they collect from households and commercial establishments of this bustling community in Quezon City of about 150,000 residents. The collected recyclable and biodegradable resources are in turn recycled or composted, and the residual waste is properly disposed of in accordance with Republic Act No. 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act.

BASIRCA members led the repainting of their “kolong-kolongs” using certified lead safe Triton paints donated by Roosevelt Chemical Inc., a member of the Philippine Paint & Coatings Association, Inc. (PPCAI).

“Ang aming mga kolong-kolong ay mahalagang katuwang namin sa marangal na trabaho araw-araw na nakakatulong upang mapanatili ang kalinisan at kalusugan ng aming pamayanan,” said BASIRCA’s president Andy Gammad. “Kailangang pinturahang muli upang mapaganda at maiwasan ang pangangalawang,” he added.

“We recognize the irreplaceable role of BASIRCA members in protecting community health and environment through ecological solid waste management,” said Jover Larion, Phinla Project Coordinator for Quezon City, EcoWaste Coalition.

Phinla is short for the Global Program to Scale Up Multi-Sectoral Sustainable Waste Management Systems and Strengthening of Livelihoods for Poverty-Affected Populations in the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Global Development (BMZ) and implemented by the EcoWaste Coalition and World Vision-Philippines.

“We thank Triton Philippines for providing BASIRCA with the necessary lead safe anti-rust metal primer and quick drying enamel for refurbishing their kolong-kolongs,” Larion said.

“We also thank Barangay Chairman Wilfredo ‘Willy’ Cara and the Barangay Council for their appreciation of and support to the environmental service being rendered by BASIRCA resource collectors on a daily basis,” he added.

The event concluded with a “kamayan” (communal feasting) celebrating the resource collectors’ togetherness and solidarity with one another.

Certified lead safe by the US-based SCS Global Services, Triton paints meet the maximum legal limit of 90 parts per million (ppm) for lead in paints and similar surface coatings as per DENR Administrative Order No. 2013-24, as well as the Quezon City Ordinance No. 2739-2018, which requires the use of lead safe paints in construction, maintenance and renovation projects and activities.