Obando residents bring sanitary landfill issue to Supreme Court

BULACAN, Philippines – Residents of Obando town have filed a petition before the Supreme Court (SC) to order Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino Alvarado to stop the construction of a P1-billion, 44-hectare sanitary landfill in Barangay Salambao.

Led by Maria Teresa Bondoc, Wilfredo de Ocampo, Conrado and Macaria Lumabas, Melissa Padilla and Lucila Sayao, the Obando residents warned that, among others, the landfill poses a serious threat to the health of Obando residents and nearby towns along the Manila Bay.

They said the landfill, the pits of which will be on Manila Bay itself and will be built on reclaimed land, will also threaten their main livelihood – fishing.

They said they personally aired their concerns to Alvarado in a dialogue last June 21. But the following day, Alvarado paved the way for the construction of the landfill by approving the reclassification of the land of the project site.

The Obando residents said the landfill involves the large-scale dumping of unprocessed garbage into the coastal waters of Obando along Manila Bay.

“But the contractor itself, Ecoshield Development Corp. (EDC), admitted that dumping and transit of garbage will cause contamination and degradation of fresh water quality,” they said.

The residents alleged that no realistic public consultations were ever held that could have afforded them to air their concerns.