ILOILO City – The Christmas and New Year celebrations in this city generated tons of garbage, according to the city government’s General Services Office (GSO).
On Jan. 1 alone, 50 tons of trash were collected in just three hours (6 a.m. to 9 a.m.), said Engr. Niel Ravena, GSO assistant department head.
On average, GSO collects 300 tons daily.
“Meaning to say in just three hours naka-one-fourth na ‘ta,” said Ravena.
At the Iloilo Terminal Market, popularly called “Super”, the volume of solid waste tripled, he revealed.
The market churns out an average of 10 tons of garbage daily; the GSO garbage truck would make four trips to collect these.
On Jan. 1, the GSO garbage truck had to add six more trips to “Super” to get the garbage, said Ravena.
Most of the garbage was “organic” such as rotten fruits, he added.
Meanwhile, on the busy downtown streets of Delgado, Iznart and JM Basa in the City Proper the GSO collected four trucks of garbage, mostly Styrofoam and plastic bags.
At the Jaro Big market, the GSO truck made five trips to haul garbage. One trip was usually enough each day, said Ravena.
He believed the opening up of sidewalks to vendors during the holidays was the main reason for the surge in the volume of garbage.
Some 300 vendors were allowed to sell along sidewalks not only in the City Proper but also in the districts of La Paz, Arevalo, Mandurriao, Jaro, Molo, and Lapuz.
Opening the sidewalks to vendors during the Yuletide season is a yearly practice of the city government to. It benefits not only poor vendors but also shoppers scouting for affordable merchandise./PN
