Imported trash sails back to Canada after 6 years

MANILA, Philippines — The 69 containers of garbage illegally dumped to the Philippines between 2013 and 2014 are now sailing back to Canada.

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority confirmed that the containers stored at the Subic Bay Port for years have been pulled out early Friday.

"A total of 69 garbage-laden containers — 67 of which were stored in Subic since 2013, and 2 brought in from Manila recently — were loaded onto MV Bavaria, a Liberian-flagged container ship commissioned to transport the containers back to Canada," the SBMA said in a statement.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. posted photos of the containers being loaded to the vessel on his Twitter account Thursday night.

Locsin also advised all recalled Philippine diplomats to return to Canada as the garbage issue has been resolved.

The Philippines' top diplomat earlier recalled the Philippine ambassador and consuls to Canada after the North American country missed its May 15 deadline of taking back the containers of waste.

"To our recalled posts, get your flights back. Thanks and sorry for the trouble you went through to drive home a point," Locsin said in a separate tweet.

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