BAGUIO CITY – The City Council passed a resolution authorizing City Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Manila Waster Total Solutions Corporation for the conduct of the free Waste Analysis and Characterization Study (WACS) on the proposed waste-to-energy project of the city government.
The resolution authored by all members of the local legislative body states that the conduct of the free WACS requires collaboration between the city government and the proponent for the effective implementation of the study that will guide policy makers and decision makers in crafting the proper measures on the proper disposal of the city’s generated waste.
WACS is a process that generates the basic data for planning, particularly waste generation, total waste generation within a collection area and in the whole local government; composition of waste generated at source; volume and composition of waste brought to the disposal site; potential percentage of waste for diversion at source and at disposal site; percentage of generated waste within collection area that are not collected our accounted for.
Section 16 of the Local Government Code of 1991 and the Sanitation Code of the Philippines mandate the city government to exercise powers for the efficient provision of basic services and facilities intended primarily to service the needs of the residents of the city such as drainage, flood control and similar facilities, including facilities for solid waste management.
The Manila Water Total Solutions, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Manila Waster Company, is reportedly a leader in environmentally and sustainable water, used water and solid waste management solutions.
The company intends to partner with the city government for the WACS on the proposed waste-to-energy project of the city considering its solid waste as feed materials.
The establishment of a waste-to-energy plant in a portion of the area ceded to the city government by the agriculture department is one of the identified solutions to the city’s waste disposal problem.
The proposed waste-to-energy project is a government-to-government transaction to help effectively and efficiently address the city’s solid waste problem in the absence of a substantial land area for a sanitary landfill.
Republic Act (RA) 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act mandates all local governments to immediately close the operation of their open dumpsites and replace the same with controlled dump facilities or engineered sanitary landfill that are beneficial in preserving and protecting the environment and the health of the people.
Since the implementation of the law nearly two decades ago, the city government closed the operation of its closed dumpsite but has not yet established the appropriate facility that could end the continuous hauling of the city’s residual waste outside the city.
By Dexter A. See
