BORACAY – Garbage disposal in this island resort raises health concerns. Residents are complaining of air pollution.
Manocmanoc barangay captain Nixon Sualog said children have been sent home from school because of the foul odor from a nearby materials recovery facility (MRF).
Manocmanoc Elementary School and Manocmanoc National High School, according to Radyo Todo Aklan 88.5 FM, complained of the stench from the heap of garbage a few meters from the school.
“Suspendido ang mga klase dahil sa foul odor galing sa basura. May several complaints at petition letters ang mga residente at schools dahil na rin sa delay ang paghakot ng mga basura ng contractor,” said Sualog.
Sualog appealed for help from the municipal government of Malay and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to address the increasing volume of garbage at the Manocmanoc MRF.
“Dapat idiretso ang paghakot ng basura sa mainland Malay, lalo na ang biowaste, at hindi na idaan sa Manocmanoc MRF,” added Sualog.
The local government has an engineered sanitary landfill in Barangay Kabulihan in mainland Malay. Currently, the huge volume of trash in Boracay Island – about 70 to 80 tons daily – is moved by the garbage trucks of a private contractor.
Sualog said they have been monitoring the disposal and hauling of trash by ECOS Sanitary Landfill and Waste Management Corporation to the sanitary landfill, where it is heaped on a barge and sent to Sambiray Port in mainland Malay.
“Handa kaming tumulong para maayos ang problema, ngunit kailangan i-review ang kontrata ng ECOS kung may violations sila,” he stressed.
ECOS has a 15-year contract beginning in March 2018. Every five years, the contracted hauling program is evaluated by the company and the Malay local government./PN
