This international corporation converted plastic garbage into a green health facility, this is how

In Pastrana, Leyte, Procter & Gamble (P&G) Philippines, the nation’s top producer of hygiene and health products for consumers, is building an environmentally friendly community health center and birthing facility in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity Philippines. Notably, the facility represents a major step towards sustainability as it is primarily constructed from retrieved plastic trash.

Community Partnerships in Pastrana, Leyte

Pastrana, surrounded by coconut plantations and rice fields, is going through a significant change in terms of sanitation and healthcare. The health center is an outward manifestation of the municipality’s active embrace of sustainable development, which is being backed by the corporate sector and non-governmental organizations.

P&G and Habitat Philippines have been working together to create sustainable communities since 2017. P&G’s significant community involvement in Leyte, which includes the building of this health facility with the goal of improving access to basic healthcare services for low-income families, has been made possible thanks in large part to the solid cooperation.

In August 2023, a local project management team, comprising community members, barangay leaders, the local government of Pastrana, and the regional Department of Health (DOH) representatives came together to ensure that the health center would not only meet but exceed DOH standards for healthcare facilities. This eco-friendly health center project will serve approximately 1,100 individuals, catering to their basic healthcare needs and giving access to proper pre and post-natal care for mothers.

Innovative Construction: The Science behind the Health Center

At the core of this health center is an innovative and sustainable approach— the use of eco-casts. Manufactured from single-use plastics collected by the Habitat community in Kawayanville, Tacloban City, these recycled materials were used in the health center’s construction.

The process involves shredding plastic waste and combining it with aggregates, including sand, gravel, cement, additives, and water. The mixture is then pressed and molded using a specialized machine, followed by a seven-day drying and curing process.

Particularly, the eco-cast outperforms concrete hollow blocks in quality, providing higher thermal insulation and exceptional fire resistance (179 minutes or 3 hours). It is more compact and sturdier, with a strength recording of 700 psi, more than 4 times higher than the 150 psi of hollow blocks, ensuring a robust building.

Sustaining Long-Term Health Impact

Habitat for Humanity Philippines’ current focus is on sustaining the health center’s functionality. In collaboration with the local government unit of Pastrana and the regional DOH office, it provided Basic Health Training for Barangay Health Workers (BHWs), empowering them to independently maintain the health center.

Marilyn Estrellado, Programs and Operations Director of Habitat for Humanity Philippines shared, “The trained BHWs from the community will help man the facility, augmenting the capacity of health professionals provided by the LGU and DOH. We also appreciate Pastrana LGU and the DOH’s commitment to providing constant medical supplies, manpower, and proper maintenance of the health center to ensure improved access to quality health care and services for the community members in need.”

In the areas where it conducts business, P&G has dedicated itself to becoming a Force for Good and a Force for Growth. To better the lives of about 2,000 people in Barangay Baganihan, P&G and Habitat Philippines constructed their first health facility in Marilog, Davao in April 2021. The center offers a full health and WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) program. In 2024, another environmentally friendly health facility is scheduled to open in Sterling Park, Caloocan, Metro Manila, with an emphasis on providing assistance to 1,500 people living in informal settlements.

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