Calbayog City legislators push approval and implementation of the new solid waste management system

By GINA DEAN-RAGUDO, Samar News.com
April 9, 2011

CALBAYOG CITY  –  While the Sanggunian is working on the immediate approval and implementation of the Comprehensive and Integrated Solid Waste Management System of the City, the first batch of “Trainors’ Training on Waste Analysis and Characterization Survey” (WACS) was conducted on April 6, 2011 at the Sports Center.

Since the law mandates that the segregation and collection of solid wastes (specifically biodegradable, compostable and reusable wastes) shall be conducted at the barangay level, and the non-recyclable materials and special wastes shall be the obligation of the city through its private garbage collector; the Solid Waste and Management Office (SWMO) required the barangay officials or its representatives to undergo WACS training.

From among the 22 service areas, the city has an existing 8 Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) that are operational – receive, separate, and prepare recyclable materials for marketing to end-user manufacturers.

On the other hand, WACS is the process to determine the total weight and volume of wastes and verify the composition of waste materials being disposed per day, assess the actual value of the 30% required diversion and identifies the kind of waste for diversion from the disposal facility.

According to 2006 study on Characterization and Quantification of Residuals from Material Recovery Facilities, the purpose of the material recovery facilities (MRF) residual characterization was to obtain a complete picture of the disposal and recovery potential for MRF residuals in order to allow evaluation of potentially applicable recovery strategies including processing and conversion technologies.

CSWM Chair Ronald P. Aquino said that in the new solid waste management system, the city will implement color coded and numbered sacks, impose schedules of bulky garden wastes collection, no use of plastic bags and will enforce stricter penalties for non-compliant or violators.

He warned the people not to burn household garbage like recyclable items, yard or garden wastes. Said human activities are contributing to global warming by adding excessive amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere; Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide accumulate in the atmosphere and trap heat that normally would exit into outer space, he added.

He also said that dumping of garbage in non-designated areas and pick-up points are also prohibited as it becomes a breeding ground for disease causing organisms.

Vice-Mayor Aquino believed that achieving a hundred percent compliance involves a laborious task considering that Calbayog is composed of 157 barangays and considered the third largest city in the Philippines. But as head or architects of their respective territories, it needs good strategy.