The Green Polis program, monitored by the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO) in Bontoc, Mountain Province continues to help collect garbage that transforms waste into construction materials that help to build homes in Barangay Caneo.
This innovative initiative is done to convert waste materials from plastic and glass bottles into sustainable construction materials to help Barangay Caneo on their relocation site. This aims not only to address environmental concerns but also to support recycling or reusing waste into beneficial materials.
The Green Polis program has volunteers designated at some collection points of Bontoc, where they will collect garbage and monitor the proper compliance of segregation.
According to Grail F. Acoking, Revenue Collection Clerk 1 of MENRO, the collected glass is weighed and crushed using the bottle crusher. This process grinds bottles like mayonnaise and other broken glass pieces that are not accepted or bought at junk shops. The end product which is the sand-like material is then mixed with gravel, sand, and cement to produce eco-friendly hollow blocks.
With the cooperation of Green Polis, plastics, bottles, and glasses, are collected. Those collected materials are then delivered to the facility equipped with a bottle crusher.
She added that last year, the MENRO donated cement made from glass bottles to Caneo as relocation sites and the core shelters need it. Some of the plastics are also used for decorative purposes.
As stated by the research entitled, The Effect of Waste Glass Bottles as an Alternative Coarse Aggregate in Concrete Mixture, by Tomas U. Ganiron Jr. 2014, the possibility of using broken glass as a substitute for coarse aggregate in concrete serves as one promising solution to the escalating solid waste problem. The use of concrete for the disposal of solid waste has concentrated mostly on aggregates since they provide the only real potential for using large quantities of waste materials. Apart from producing cement from glass shards, there are also making eco-bricks that can serve as construction materials.
The impact of the program is evident in Barangay Caneo. Ached Camsur, one of the residents of the barangay said, “It was helpful for us that we received this kind of donation to strengthen the foundation of every corner of our house and for our family to be protected from any kind of harm.”
Ached added that during the relocation, they felt overwhelmed, but these donations from MENRO helped and pushed them to start building their homes.
The Green Polis program continues to collect wastes in their designated areas throughout Bontoc, Mountain Province.