DUMAGUETE CITY — Some local government units (LGUs) in Negros Oriental are set to come up with a 10-year solid waste management plan and dumpsite safe closure and rehabilitation plan from 2018 to 2028.
This developed as LGUs in Negros Oriental and Siquijor province attended a five-day workshop on how to finalize their respective safe closure plans.
The workshop, which ended Friday, was conducted by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) in Central Visayas with 19 LGUs attending, six of them from Siquijor.
Of the 19, six were able to present their respective Safe Closure and Rehabilitation Plan (SCRP), including five from Siquijor – Enrique, Villanueva, San Juan, Larena, Siquijor, and Lazi, while the SCRP of the municipality of Maria is in the final stage of preparation.
For those in attendance coming from Negros Oriental, only Dumaguete City was able to present the SCRP while Basay, Manjuyod, Canlaon City, Guihulngan City, Vallehermoso, Sta. Catalina, and Valencia were able to submit drafts of their respective SCRPs.
Sibulan, Zamboanguita, Bacong and Siaton have yet to submit even drafts of SCRPs while that of Mabinay was returned.
Dumaguete City Environment and Natural Resources Officer (ENRO), Chelvier Patrimonio, presented before the workshop the initial stage of the city’s SCRP and noted that their clearing operation has begun.
She said the city is fortunate to have gotten more than PHP8 million in financial assistance from DENR to fund the SCRP, which is pegged at PHP17 million.
Included in the rehabilitation component is the installation of monitoring wells, construction of a PHP7 million Material Recovery Facility and the sanitary landfill.
She said the open garbage dumpsite will definitely be closed within the year, especially once the assistance from DENR is downloaded.
Under the closure plan, the whole dumpsite area will be fenced and a five-meter setback will be observed from the dike of the Banica River and from the road, she pointed out. (Juancho Gallarde/PNA)
