CEBU, Philippines - In Central Visayas, four cities and five municipalities are operating a sanitary landfill (SLF).
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-7 reported that of the nine SLF sites, seven are in Cebu. These are in Consolacion, Cordova, Compostela, Dalaguete, Asturias and in the cities of Cebu and Talisay as well as in Bayawan and Bais cities in Negros Oriental.
In Cebu, four are also under construction in San Francisco in Camotes Island and Toledo City while construction is also ongoing in Talibon and Alburquerque in Bohol.
DENR-7 regional executive director Isabelo R. Montejo said sanitary landfill refers to a waste disposal site designed, constructed, operated and maintained in a manner that exerts engineering control over significant potential environment impacts arising from the development and operation of the facility.
Montejo said that segregation, avoidance, reuse, reduce, recycle, and composting at the household level should be strictly observed and practiced as some of the ways to reduce the volume of wastes getting into the SLF.
“Segregation at source shall refer to a solid waste management practice of separating, at the point of origin, different materials found in solid waste in order to promote recycling and reuse of resources and to reduce the volume of waste for collection and disposal,” he said in a statement.
Pursuant to the relevant provisions of Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code, the LGUs shall be primarily responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of Republic Act No. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management within their respective jurisdictions.
Segregation and collection of solid waste shall be conducted at the barangay level specifically for biodegradable, compostable and reusable wastes.
In a related development, the report released by the Environmental Management Bureau-7 revealed that as of the third quarter this year, 17 out of 132 municipalities and cities all have operational material recovery facilities (MRF) in their barangays. Of the 53 LGUs in Cebu, 15 indicated to have complied while two out of 48 also complied in Bohol.
On the closure of dumpsites, the same report said 33 LGUs have obtained approval to close down their dumpsites in Cebu with 12; Bohol, 13; Negros Oriental with seven, and one in Siquijor. —MIT (FREEMAN)