Navotas controlled dump to operate until end-2005

The National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) has assured the public of the continued operation of the Tanza Controlled Dumpsite Facility in Navotas until the end of the year with its approval of the site’s closure plan.

Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco said that with the approval of the closure plan, there will be no more reason to prevent the continued legal operation of the controlled disposal facility (CDF).

Tiangco said the seal of approval by the solid waste body should now pave the way for the lifting of the illegal barricades at the Binuangan River set up by residents of Obando, Bulacan at the common boundary with Navotas that have caused a severe problem of garbage disposal for the town of the city of Manila, that also uses the same dump in a contract with the municipal government, in the last three months.

"I am hoping that the local officials and the people will uphold the resolution. They should let the barges enter our facility and at the same time work together with us to properly implement the closure plan, the better for our people and the environment," Tiangco said.

A resolution issued by the NSWMC last June 6, 2005 gave the go signal for the Philippine Ecology Systems Corporation (Phileco), operators of the 11-hectare CDF, to implement its closure plan and gives it the legal right to continue dumping solid waste at the facility until December 31 this year as scheduled.

Earlier, Tiangco has warned oppositors of the dangers to both the people of Navotas and Bulacan and the immediate environment about the untimely closure of the Tanza CDF. This warning was subsequently supported by environmentalist groups on the health hazards it posed.

The resolution orders Phileco, the project implementor, to institute the proper and necessary closure of the CDF.

"If the CDF is left uncovered without applying the proper closure plan, aside from being an eyesore, rodents and other pests will further multiply due to the abundant supply of food resulting in the unabated spread of germs and diseases," Phileco authorities said.

Under the law, all existing disposal facilities are given up to Feb. 16, 2006 to execute the closure plans needed and for them to be converted into a sanitary landfill.

Phileco said all sanitary landfills in industrialized countries incorporated a closure plan in their facilities to ensure the preservation of the environment. This is likewise integrated in the master plan to make the area usable for future generations, the mayor said.

"Landfills, when closed properly, normally ends up as parks, recreational facilities such as golf courses, football fields and open spaces. They may even be considered for low cost housing," said Tiangco.