Kapitans told to form barangay waste management teams
MEETING with the newly-installed barangay kapitans of the city for the first time, Dagupan Mayor Benjamin Lim asked them to prioritize the creation of their respective waste management unit or team to strictly enforce Ordinance No. 1929-2009, the Comprehensive Solid Waste Management Program for the City.
Lim encouraged the kapitans to allocate funds for the creation of their waste management teams as he stressed anew his plan to close the city’s open dumpsite along the shoreline of Bonuan Boquig in Tondaligan.
“The operation of the dumpsite in the area is wrong. That is why, in the past, we attempted to put the open dumpsite’s operation to an end by purchasing a 30-hectare property in Barangay Awai in San Jacinto. The area is very ideal for a sanitary landfill operation which can serve the city for about 50 years,” said Lim.
He blamed politics for the eventual loss of the property and shelving of the sanitary landfill project.
(The previous administration, however, determined that the Awai land, however, was already covered by the government’s Comprehensive Land Reform Program before the purchase and the city subsequently lost its legal battle to claim it).
Lim pointed out that under the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, cities and municipalities must have their own sanitary landfill but “Having one and maintaining it is expensive”.
The mayor also cited the importance of segregating waste at the household level to lessen the city’s burden of waste collection from 100 percent to 40 percent, which will mean using just one dump truck a day for garbage collection.
The mayor also reminded the barangay chairmen that they are expected to be knowledgeable enough to know the different sources of wastes in their barangays which include not only household garbage but also wastes coming from hospitals and commercial establishments.
Twenty-six barangay chairmen attended the meeting, presided over by Waste Management Division chief Teddy Villamil.
Villamil also discussed with the punong barangays the city’s various programs such as the “no segregation, no collection policy”; “Basura Ko, Sagot Ko; Basura at Dengue-Batas at Disiplina alert; and waste analysis and characterization system. (CIO)
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