Naga City in Cebu forges pact on solid waste management

MANILA, Philippines - Naga City in Cebu province, in collaboration with two strategic partners, is poised to set the pace in solid waste management using a methodology that segregates biodegradable materials that are recycled into compost or soil conditioner from the non-biodegradable trash that can be used as alternative fuel for industrial production.

This developed following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) among Naga Mayor Valdemor Chiong and top officials of APO Cement Corp. that maintains a plant in Barangay Tinaan and FDRCON Co. Inc., a construction firm based in nearby Talisay City.

The MOU is meant to provide added momentum to Naga’s struggle to attain zero waste status in compliance with Republic Act 9003, or the Solid Waste Management Law.

The program officially took off with the completion last year of a material recovery facility (MRF) put together in cooperation with FDRCON.

The MRF listed APO Cement as its principal client, supplying the cement plant with about 10 tons of non-biodegradable materials per day used to fire its kilns.

The remaining biodegradable waste, representing about 70 percent of the MRF’s output, ends up in compost pits or as organic fertilizers.

CEMEX Philippines, which owns APO Cement, hailed the strategic alliance as a “major breakthrough toward institutionalizing zero waste as a way of life among Filipinos.”

“This project may yet establish Cebu’s oldest town as a model in efficient waste management for all local government units across the Philippines to emulate,” CEMEX Philippines president Pedro Palomino said.

Apart from sparing Naga of the stinky garbage woes, the project also generated employment opportunities for the local folk who were hired as waste pickers or separators.