Clark sanitary landfill operator to cover more areas

MANILA, Philippines — Metro Clark Waste Management Corp (MCWM), the operator of a sanitary landfill within the Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga, is targeting to serve more municipalities in the region on top of the 90 local government units (LGUs) it is currently serving.

In a recent interview with The STAR, MCWM president and CEO Rufo Colayco said the company collects and accepts an average of 1,600 tons of garbage daily. Comprising of household and residual waste, as most recyclables are set aside in the respective materials recovery facilities of cities and municipalities.

But the daily volume is still below the total daily waste volume in Central Luzon which is 2,500 tons, Colayco said.

Thus, he said MCWM hopes to expand its reach and be able to cover the whole region in terms of collected volume of daily garbage.

“We’re working all the time to get more and more, to get all the LGUs. Garbage should be thrown in a properly engineered disposal site. And we’re the only engineered sanitary land fill in the Philippines,” Colayco said.

Colayco, former head of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), said garbage has become a really serious problem in the country.

“The problem that we have, is that garbage is simply seen in unseen corners, places, etc — that decays and generates foul liquid,” he said.

At present, MCWM collects and manages the waste of 90 cities and municipalities in Central Luzon. Its facility and services help LGUs to ensure public health, food safety and environmental sustainability.

Incorporated in 2002, MCWM offers and develops sustainable solutions to reduce the impact of urban development and energy production projects in the Philippines.

Through a partnership with German conglomerates Birkhahn + Nolte GmbH and Heers & Brockstedt Umwelttechnik GmbH, it operates the sanitary landfill that integrates world-class technology and engineering.

The sanitary landfill conforms to internationally accepted standards that substantially exceed the requirements of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.

The facility is located on a 100-hectare property within the Clark Economic Zone, some 80 kilometers north of Manila. It comes with recycling facilities, leachate storage and treatments pods as well an environmental buffer.

Of the 100-hectare land, 70 hectares are dedicated for the landfill, 10 hectares for recycling facilities and five hectares for offices and other infrastructure. The remaining 15 hectares acts as environmental buffer.

MCWM is touted as the first sanitary landfill operator in Asia to receive the ISO 9000 Series of 2015 for quality management systems.

Moving forward, the company may even build a waste-to-energy plant to help solve the country’s worsening garbage problems.

The government recently intensified its implementation of RA 9003, going after non-compliant LGUs in the country.

The DENR for instance, wants to close down Boracay if a lot of companies and commercial establish in the islands will continue to defy the law.