News and UpdatesIn the NewsLandfill site opposed

Landfill site opposed

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The proposed multi-million peso property in the outskirts village of Candauay in Dumaguete City, the provincial capital of Negros Oriental, being eyed as the sanitary landfill site is drawing an increasing opposition from residents in and near the area who cited mainly health, safety and environmental reasons.

This comes as the city council granted authority to Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo during their Wednesday’s regular session the authority to purchase a 3.5-hectare lot worth Php 18.7 million from spouses Francisco and Salvacion Divinagracia for the sanitary landfill in Candauay.

The move is in answer to repeated notices from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to shut down the city’s existing open dumpsite also in the same barangay as it is already outlawed.

At the same time, it also aims to address the worsening problem of garbage collection and disposal in the city, with City Hall reporting of an estimated 70 to 80 tons of waste generated daily.

On Friday, residents in Barangay Camanjac, which is adjacent to Candauay but where the proposed site transcends boundaries, signed a three-page opposition letter addressed to Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo, expressing their objection to the proposal.

The signature campaign, backed by the Catholic Church in Camanjac headed Fr. Sulpicio Vincoy, expressly pointed out certain parameters in the law that the residents feel must be complied by the city government prior to the undertaking of the sanitary landfill, said Marilyn Kays, an active campaigner and resident of Camanjac.

While the bulk of the property owned by the Divinagracias is situated in Candauay, residents in nearby barangay Camanjac are apprehensive because the proposed site is just 100 meters away from the LCP Bloomingtown housing project and a few hundred meters from the river.

Kays clarified that they are not against the establishment of a sanitary landfill as they understand the necessity to put up the facility to address the garbage problem of the city.

However, their concerns center on basic issues like health, where the proposed site is near a populated, residential area; safety, because the site is a “lagnasan” or a natural course of the nearby Ocoy River; and environmental hazards, with the site vulnerable to flooding.

The signature campaign aims to get as many signatures as possible and will hopefully be forwarded to Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo on Monday.

As this developed, Loreto Revac, Provincial Environment Management Unit (PEMU) OIC of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB)-Negros Oriental, explained Friday afternoon that the establishment of a sanitary landfill will take a lengthy process.

According to him, the first step would be for technical team of the Mines ang GeoSciences Bureau (MGB) in Region 7 to conduct a geological suitability assessment and other processes of the area being proposed for the sanitary landfill.

This will be done in coordination with the EMB and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), he added.

Revac further explained that after the joint assessment, recommendations would be made to the regional director for review.

Other processes would include the determination of daily waste generation of the city and social acceptability of the residents/community of the proposed project, environmental impact assessment and environmental compliance certificate, among others, Revac said.

The EMB-Negros Oriental PEMU OIC also assured that a social acceptability will be conducted to determine the sentiments of the residents in the barangays and the community.

Revac also disclosed that during a recent meeting of the Technical Working Group of the city, he suggested not buying the property first until after the joint geological assessment has been made.

The authority given to the mayor was approved in Wednesday’s session by a vote of five in favor, one against and three abstentions, raising questions as to its validity considering that it involves an appropriation of some Php 18.7 million pesos for the 30,530 square meter lot at P615 per square meter.

Councilor Agustin Perdices believes a sizeable amount of money is involved and so the granting requires a qualified majority.

But environmental lawyer, Councilor Manny Arbon stressed only a simple majority was required because the amount had been approved and obligated in an appropriation ordinance in their previous session for the purchase of a lot intended as a sanitary land fill. Thus the authority granted to the mayor only requires a simple majority of all the members present during the session today.

The five who voted in the affirmative are councilors Manny Arbon, Lilani Ramon, Jo Kenneth Arbas, Alan Gel Cordova and Michael Bandal. Only Perdices voted in the negative while councilors Lionel Banogon, Jose Victor Imbo and Estanislao Alviola were out of the session hall when the voting was conducted and so their votes were considered as abstentions.

It was however, clarified by the four that they are supportive of the city’s desire to establish a sanitary landfill, but awaits the go signal from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources after an assessment is conducted as to the appropriateness and suitability of the proposed site.

The site is situated more than 100 meters away from the nearest housing subdivision, which is the Bloomington housing site, and 300 to 400 meters away from the waterway.

According to Arbon, the technical working group of which he is the chairman will not be surprised if there are opposition to the proposed site due to misconceptions that the city is merely transferring the garbage dumpsite to another site within the barangay.

Arbon explained this is the reason why the city was forced to look for sites within Dumaguete because of the “NIMBY” attitude or the “not in my backyard” stance of communities in at least six probable sites they have visited in Valencia, Sibulan, and Dauin.

He said the “NIMBY” attitude is posing a problem and a major stumbling block in the acquisition of a proposed sanitary landfill.

But with at least three “final” orders of the DENR for the closure of the present dumpsite in Candau-ay, and a sort of the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of the local government unit for a potential law suit against sitting officials, “by all means legal, we have to find an SLF site,” Arbon pointed out.

Councilor JV Imbo says if the TWG respects the sentiments of communities they have visited, there’s no reason for the city not to address the question of social acceptability in the proposed SLF site in Dumaguete.

According to Arbon, the city government of Dumaguete is running against time with no other possible area that can accommodate an average of 60-70 tons of garbage daily, the best option was to purchase the lot for a possible site of the Sanitary Land Fill. He said segregation at source will be strictly enforced, only residual waste arrives at the SLF.

He wanted to correct the notion that a sanitary landfill is no different from a garbage dumpsite. It is called sanitary because no foul odor is produced using the recent technological advancements, the lechate is contained like the SLF in Bayawan City where surrounding communities and even visitors could hardly smell any foul odor, since its establishment seven years ago. In fact, the recent boy scouts camporal was held near the SLF.

In lieu of this, Arbon has emphasized the need for a thorough information campaign to address the wrong notion and perception.

It is for this reason, that the Liga nga mga Barangays chairman Councilor Lionel Banogon has abstained because as punong barangay, a lot of consultations is required before any environmental project can be established. Candau-ay village chief Gregorio Oira informed him that a consultation is scheduled on Sunday. (MetroPost/ with reports from Judy Partlow and Juancho Gallarde/PNA)

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