GUIMARAS – Barangay Navalas in Buenavista town was declared champion in the implementation of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act during the The Outstanding Manager (TOMan) for Environmental Management awarding rites on Monday, Dec. 18.
It received P20,000 cash prize and a plaque.
Barangay La Paz in Nueva Valencia placed first runner-up and took home P15,000 and a plaque while the second runner-up was Barangay San Isidro in Buenavista which received P10,000 and a plaque.
Barangay Alaguisoc in Jordan and Barangay Sebaste in Sibunag placed third and fourth runners-up, receiving plaques and P8,000 and P5,000, respectively.
Gov. Joaquin Carlos Rahman Nava said that while the efforts of the community to maintain a clean and green environment are recognized, it is time to expand the initiative to the coastal areas of the province.
“I think it’s high time that we will not limit ourselves on the land-based initiatives, we can go to the coastal as well. We are not just here to have clean and green and blue environment but we should be greener than green and bluer than blue,” Nava said.
The aforementioned recognitions, he said, will help raise the awareness of the community about the environmental issues in the province.
For his part, Vice Gov. John Edward Gando said protecting the environment is a concern of all communities in Guimaras.
Along with the TOMan for Environmental Management awarding ceremony, the Certification for Zero Open Defecation was also awarded to 10 barangays.
These are Zaldivar and Sawang in Buenavista; Bulwangan, Balcon Maravilla, Sinapsapan, and Lawi in Jordan; Ravina and Millian in Sibunag; and Cabano in San Lorenzo.
Each barangay received P10,000.
Patterned on the Gawad Pangulo sa Kapaligiran, TOMan Awards is one of the mechanisms of the provincial government to institutionalize an integrated system of providing incentives and rewards to propel local officials and stakeholders to contribute to an organizational goal of effective environmental governance. (With a report from the Guimaras Provincial Government)/PN
