MANILA, Philippines — The 2.561 tons of electronic waste (e-waste) from Hong Kong that departed at the Mindanao Container Terminal on Monday will be monitored until it reaches its point of origin, according to an official of the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
“We should know if the shipping container of e-waste reached its intended destination… because there is a possibility it will be dumped somewhere. We’d never know, it could be thrown in the middle of the ocean. That is not good (for the environment),” BOC-MICT sub-district collector John Simon said.
The cargo contained shredded gadget parts and plastic scraps packed in 22 huge sling bags.
“There should be an accounting when it reached the port,” Simon said.
The e-waste was loaded onto the cargo ship SITC Nagoya, which will make stopovers at other ports before heading to Hong Kong.
The cargo was reportedly shipped by Hin Yuen Tech. Env. Ltd. and consigned to Crowd Win Industrial Ltd.
Simon said the BOC also monitored the return of 51 shipping containers of plastic trash to South Korea. The cargoes were sent to the Philippines in July and August last year, shipped back to South Korea on Jan. 11 and arrived there on Feb. 3.