Rehabilitation of Tagbilaran City’s open dumpsite has started and is about “30 percent” complete, less than three months after the facility was shut down by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), a local environment official said.
Cesar Pelaez, chief of the Tagbilaran City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO), said that rehabilitation started on January 6 through Calape-based contractor Gail Construction Supply.
It will take about 90 days to complete the project, he added.
They have started clearing operations and the mounting of the garbage at the dumpsite. The site will then be covered with soil.
“Karon gasugod na ta og soil covering, first soil covering pa. Unya gimontar na nato atong leachate pipes ug ang atong air vents para hungawan sa atong mga gas,” he said.
Open dumpsites are strictly prohibited under Republic Act (RA) 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, prompting the DENR to shut down the facility in Tagbilaran and the local government to start the rehabilitation.
The rehabilitation of the facility is funded through a P13-million budget from the city’s Quick Response Fund and P7 million from the Environment Management Bureau of the DENR.
The city’s ultimate goal is to turn the dumpsite into a public park.
It was earlier noted that site will undergo various post-closure maintenance activities to ensure that it is already free of contamination and leachate, or the liquid produced in a dumpsite from the decomposition of wastes, before it can be turned into an eco-park.
Meanwhile, the city is gearing up to start operations of its material recovery facility (MRF) which is located within the compound of the shut-down dumpsite.
The city has acquired equipment for the MRF but is still waiting for electric connection to power the recycling devices.
In the meantime, the city is using a temporary transfer station in Barangay Cabawan for segregation of collected garbage before residual wastes are transported to the Alburquerque Sanitary Landfill. (A. Doydora)