Garbage is a basic problem

It seems that our country will never be rid of controversies. The results of decades of negligence, lack of foresight, indifference and greed, are now threatening to engulf all of us in a heap, a garbage heap, that is. Waste disposal has always been one of our country’s recurrent problems.

A few days ago, news of the closure of the sanitary landfill in Rodriguez, Rizal hogged the headlines of most newspapers. The 14-hectare landfill is where most of the tons of garbage collected daily all over Metro Manila is dumped. Rizal Gov. Casimiro Ynares III ordered the closure of the landfill, expressing concern for the safety of the residents in the area. Ynares claimed the facility could no longer accommodate further dumping based on the findings of its operator, International Solid Waste Integrated Management Systems (SWIMS). His claim may be valid and we can understand his concern.

In July 2000, hundreds of people were buried in garbage and died in what was known internationally as the Payatas Tragedy. The governor is only being wary that this might happen again in his province. The MMDA tried to use an alternative 19-hectare area adjacent to the old dumpsite, but was prevented by Rodriguez Mayor Pedro Cuerpo, claiming that the substitute dumpsite did not have a single license, permit or authorization from the municipal government and the required environmental clearance from the DENR.

This embarrassing incident only illustrates how pervasive negligence and lack of foresight are among our government agencies. Look at our Asian neighbor, Singapore. Anticipating the increase in the volume of garbage as population grows, they have created the Semaku Landfill to meet their waste disposal needs. They enclosed the mangrove-clad island of Pulau Semakau and a small adjacent island with a rock-armored sand bund. The bund is lined with a thick plastic industrial membrane and layer of marine clay to prevent refuse from leaching into the sea. Environmental and conservation concerns were taken into consideration to preserve the existing flora and fauna thriving in the island. The landfill is expected to meet Singapore’s waste disposal needs until the year 2040.

Meanwhile, another controversy, this time involving the proposed rehabilitation of the heavily-polluted Meycauayan-Marilao river system, began. It will be recalled that a New York-based organization, Blacksmith Institute, recently released a report called “The World’s Worst Polluted Places” for 2007. The report stated that out of the top 30 worst polluted places, the towns of Meycauayan and Marilao in Bulacan province were included as having one of the worst polluted rivers in the Asia Pacific region. Big companies lining the embankment of the river relentlessly dump all sorts of garbage including toxic heavy metal contaminants like lead, hexavalent chromium, cadmium, copper and arsenic that have turned the river into its now deplorable state.

Now a word war between two ranking Bulacan officials on the manner of rehabilitating the river has started. Vice Governor Willy Alvarado stated that no other personalities or groups can rehabilitate the said river system except the Bulakeños themselves. Alvarado further said that DENR Secretary Lito Atienza, Blacksmith Institute and JICA are not the messiah that will clean and save the Marilao-Meycauayan-Obando river system. Governor Joselito Mendoza countered that “with the enormity of the problem of the river, it would take more than the efforts of the concerned LGUs of this province. The problem of the river system cannot only be addressed by mere dredging and taking out solid waste from the river.”

Perhaps we need to remember that our natural resources are fast dwindling. Our water resources are already in jeopardy largely due to inefficient waste management. If we don’t put our acts together, experts predict that we will have no more safe and clean water to drink in 10  years. Garbage is a basic problem that must be addressed meaningfully.