BY: JENNIFER C. TILOS
DUMAGUETE CITY, May 21 (PIA) --- Dumaguete City has allocated P4.9 million recently for the implementation of solid waste management system.
Of the total amount, P3 million has been set for the establishment of Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) for the 21 barangays.
On the other hand, P1.9 million is for the construction of a Central MRF at the present dumping site which will serve as the depository of garbage from barangays where construction of MRF is not feasible.
Environmental management specialist Edgar Caro said Barangay Junob is the first barangay to establish its own barangay-based MRF while construction of the central MRF started in May 2 this year.
To diversify its approaches and technologies in mitigating solid wastes, Caro said the technical staff of Dumaguete City Environment and Natural Resources Office (ENRO) submitted a project proposal on thermolysis composting with bio-enzyme amounting to P2.6 million.
“The proposal was approved by the City Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria and the fund allocation taken from the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office,” said Caro.
The thermolysis technology facilitates for the accelerated decomposition of bio-degradable through bio-enzymes treatment.
Parallel to this technology, environmental enforcers were instructed to strictly enforce segregation-at-source pursuant to Republic Act 9003.
It can be recalled that the city government has passed an ordinance introducing, establishing, and maintaining a new system of waste management within the 30 barangays of the city known as the Integrated Solid Waste Management System.
Caro said from 1998 to 2001, major activities were focused on massive information campaign and education to give the constituency a working knowledge on the new dimension and shift on solid waste management.
In 2002, the solid wastes management system was first implemented in the City Public Market area and spread out into the eight poblacion-barangays.
These first waves of activities that were installed and institutionalized on the new wastes management system have earned for Dumaguete City twice as regional champion as the “Cleanest City in Region 7” and twice as national finalist for the same category for component cities.
“More than 16 years ago today, the City Government of Dumaguete untiringly continued its efforts to fully implement City Ordinance No. 115 and incorporated the mandatory provisions of Republic Act 9003 otherwise known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000,” said Caro. (rmn/jct/PIA7-NegOr)