QC cited anew for environmental protection

The Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) has awarded the Quezon City government with a special citation for the environmental projects it had successfully implemented in the city.

The LLDA cited QC’s package clean-up system on solid waste collection and the Payatas garbage-to-power generation plant as among the most commendable initiatives that the city has undertaken to protect and conserve the environment, including the Laguna de Bay and its surroundings.

A plaque of recognition was presented by LLDA general manager Casimiro Yñares III to QC Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department (EPWMD) chief Frederika Rentoy for the city’s achievement, during a simple awarding ceremony held recently at the Imperial Palace Suites.

Rentoy represented Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. at the occasion.

The award given to the city government came a month after Belmonte received the prestigious 2006 Communications Excellence in Organizations or CEO Excel Award for launching a successful communication program in environment management.

The city government under Belmonte’s administration has embarked on the massive promotion of recycling, waste segregation and composting in the city’s 142 barangays in an effort to address QC’s garbage problem.

To date, 56 barangays have already developed and managed their own solid waste management program and 43 barangays strictly enforce the "no segregation, no collection" policy which resulted in the reduction of waste intake at the Payatas Controlled Dumping Facility.

Meanwhile, the viability of the Payatas gas-to-power generation project was put to test last month following the switching on of the perimeter lights at the Payatas Controlled Disposal Facility.