Garbage woes in Mananga River emphasized in clean-up

CEBU, Philippines- Reynaldo (not his real name), a resident of Sitio Kasagingan, Barangay Lawaan III in Talisay City, burns his trash.

This is not exactly the ideal way of disposing garbage but he said it is his way – a quicker way – of getting rid of the trash because garbage collection has not been consistent and often, the garbage generated in the area end up at what used to be the Mananga River.

The river has since dried up.

“Tagsa ra kuhaon sa trak sa gobyerno. Kung di kolektahon sa trak mao ni mga magtambak gyud ang basura. Mao nga among dauban aron di magkatag-katag,” he laments.

For Reynaldo, burning the garbage is better than letting it rot and be feasted on by insects and animals.

Yesterday, burned plastic, swarms of flies, and dogs scavenging from one pile to another was what greeted volunteers for a cleanup operation at the area.

The activity was part of the World Water Day initiated by the Environmental Management Bureau-7 in partnership with other government offices.

One of the volunteers, Jen Kyla Gomez, 11, said she has lived in sitio Kasagingan since she was a child.

Using a shovel, Jen lifts a pile of garbage, saying some residents in the area would dispose of their trash indiscriminately. She says she helps cleaning when she has time after school.

Other children who surrounded her while she was being interviewed reacts, “Nge, labaw pa diay sila!”

Like Reynaldo, Jen says they would burn their garbage. “Sunogon man gud na amo.”

The children share that the garbage that end up in the river can only be cleared by floodwaters during heavy rain. When no rain falls and if not burned, the garbage simply piles up.

Lawyer Czareem Estella, officer-in-charge of the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office, said he was surprised to learn that barangay workers who helped in the clean-up ended up burning the trash they have gathered.

“Akong giingnan sila ayaw pagdaob kay illegal man na. They have to be educated sa RA (republic act) 9003,” he says.

Under the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, incineration is excluded in the environmental practice in ecological waste management.

Estella says the provincial government has requested the Talisay City Government and private quarry operators to lend heavy equipment to clear the river.

“Within a week, ma-address na nato ang problem diha,” Estella said, optimistically.

A Capitol employee points out, however, that clearing the area of garbage is just the first step and the bigger challenge is preventing the trash from piling up again, something that would need discipline.

She suggests residents in the area should be educated on proper garbage disposal.

“Kung magtinabangay lang, kada balay manglimpyo, wa gyoy basura… Ang problema lang pod if naa ba silay collection sa garbage,” she says.

Dennis Chong, operations head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said the situation is hazardous, especially during storms when floodwaters cannot flow because of the presence of garbage.

He said PDRRMO has trained barangay officials in Talisay on disaster risk reduction management but, “I don’t know if gi-address na nila karon.”

For the activity, EMB partnered with private groups and local government units that could adopt a water body that needs an immediate surface cleanup.

Estella said Capitol, in coordination with the Talisay City Government, identified the Mananga River as their adopted water body due to the prevailing issue of indiscriminate throwing of garbage in the area.  (FREEMAN)