MMDA finds sanitary landfill in Malabon

Metro Manila has a new sanitary landfill, covering 20 hectares of land, which will soon be ready to take in tons of trash.

Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) General Manager Robert Nacianceno said the new landfill will rise in the city of Malabon within a month.

"We no longer have a problem as to where to dump our garbage, we now have a new one," Nacianceno said.

At present, Metro Manila’s garbage is being dumped at the Rodriguez sanitary landfill, in Clark, and Payatas in Quezon City.

Nacianceno expressed confidence that the new Malabon landfill can accommodate a considerable volume of Metro Manila’s garbage for the next two to three years.

He explained the area was formerly utilized for the operation of fishponds, but is now being developed by R2 Builders owned by businessman Regis Romero.

The property, he said, has mud underneath and is now being laid down with clay to prevent leacheate from sipping out and polluting water sources.

"Nilalagyan na rin ito ng plastic liners para masiguro na walang sisingaw na lecheate," Nacianceno said, assuring the public that the new dump complies with the law on proper waste disposal.

He said the sanitary landfill will be opened to solve the problem of the closure of dumps following the enactment of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act.

Nacianceno urged Metro Manila residents to also help the MMDA in its effort to beautify the metropolis under Chairman Bayani Fernando’s "Metro Gwapo" project.

The agency has been spearheading beautification projects since January, starting with the major roads leading to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) under the Investor’s Route Program.

Nacianceno said other thoroughfares are being improved.

"With a new sanitary landfill, enough men cleaning up, and the public’s support, we will have a better Metro Manila," Nacianceno said.

MMDA Deputy Chairman Cesar Lacuna, for his part, said operations to clear esteros, canals, and other waterways in the metropolis of garbage during the dry season have paid off now that the rains have come.

He noted that water levels no longer rise as high as in the previous years and they subside faster.