BACOLOD City – The foul smell from the sanitary landfill in Barangay Felisa here has become a concern. Residents of adjacent Barangay Dulao in Bago City and Barangay Blumentritt, Murcia town plan to stage a protest.
Streamers are being prepared. Some of them read “Basura untaton bangod pulusyon,” and “Kami nga taga Blumentritt naga petisyon sang mabaho nga basura”.
SP MULLS CLOSURE, REHAB
The Sangguniang Panlungod (SP) here recently passed a resolution urging the Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB) to form a technical working group (TWG) and enforce the closure of sanitary landfill Cell No. 1 in Felisa and make a rehabilitation plan for it.
According to Councilor Carlos Jose Lopez, author of the resolution, the city council has been receiving reports of unsegregated wastes being dumped at Cell No. 1. It has also reached its maximum capacity already, making it an “open dumpsite.”
Due to alleged lack of maintenance, Cell No. 2 was constructed – just right next to it – last year.
Lopez said the matter was already discussed by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) with the city’s SWMB. The city government was advised that an updated Safe Closure and Rehabilitation Plan (SCRP) must be submitted for evaluation.
Lopez, who also chairs the SP committee on environment and ecology, cited Republic Act (RA) 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act. Local government units must ensure proper waste segregation, collection, transport, storage, treatment and disposal.
Section 37 prohibits the use of open and controlled disposal facilities and requires; these must be closed and rehabilitated.
The city government has an eight-month (May 1 to Dec. 31) P191.9-million contract with IPM Construction and Development Corp. (IPM-CDC) for the collection, hauling and disposal of the metro’s garbage.
For the management, operation and maintenance of sanitary landfill, on the other hand, the contract amounted to P63,984,258.33./PN
