South Korea to take back remaining trash shipment

MANILA, Philippines — The remaining 5,000 of the 6,500 metric tons of garbage from South Korea that arrived at the Mindanao International Container Terminal (MICT) in Misamis Oriental last year will be sent back to where it came from by next month.

John Simon, Bureau of Customs (BOC)-MICT sub-port collector, said officials of the South Korean government are set to arrive on Wednesday for a two-day meeting on the return of the garbage.

“The commitment is there. We will just discuss the details… The idea is how to fasttrack everything. The soonest we could do it, the better,” Simon said.

The BOC reexported shipping containers, which contained 1,500 metric tons of garbage, last January. 

Simon said they hope the remaining garbage would be returned early next month if not by the end of this month.

He said there were two garbage shipments, both misdeclared as synthetic plastic flakes, that arrived from South Korea on July 21 and Oct. 20 last year.

Both shipments were reportedly consigned to Verde Soko Philippines Industrial Corp.

Simon commended the South Korean government for its commitment to adhere to the Basel Convention, which prohibits the export of hazardous waste.

He said officials from both sides would formulate a plan to move the household waste placed at a recycling plant reportedly owned by the consignee in Barangay Sta. Cruz in Tagoloan. 

 “We are discussing final details of the reexportation…We would like to know from the South Korean delegation if they will hire a chartered ship,” he said.

At least 69 shipping containers or 2,000 tons of toxic waste from Canada that arrived in 2013 and 2014 were shipped back to Ottawa last month.

Another 2.561 tons of electronic waste from Hong Kong departed at the MICT last Monday.