ADB reviews Cebu City’s waste management system

CEBU, Philippines — A consultant of Asian Development Bank is currently conducting assessment of the garbage management system of Cebu City.

Nida Cabrera, head of the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office, said the result will be used to come up a better system.

Cabrera said that ADB consultant Mott MacDonald has already started gathering data about the city’s generation of garbage and how it is being managed.

“Unya karon nagsugod na sila og kuha og data. Nagreview na sila sa atong data in terms og giunsa nato pagmanage atong basura,” she said.

The consultant will assess how best to provide solid waste management services to the population of the city.

Cabrera said MacDonald’s team will do a pre-feasibility study in Cebu City for three months. After the pre-feasibility study, a final study will be conducted within the period of six months.

The ADB earlier granted the city government’s request to fund the P40 million needed for the feasibility study of a new solid waste management system through public-private partnership program.

Cabrera said the advantage of having this study is that the city government will be guided on how to effectively manage the gabage in the absence of an operational landfill.

“Usa gyud we will be guided unsaon pag-manage ang basura kay problema man gyud ni. One of the biggest issues sa siyudad kay karon man ato giatubang,” she said.

She said the consultant had already talked with the mayor on the matter. In fact, Mayor Tomas Osmeña wants MacDonald to recommend a reliable and sustainable technology for the city.

Osmeña said he has two requirements that must be considered — reliability and affordability.

“The highest criteria is reliability, it’s another way of saying I don’t want to experiment with the latest style because it might not work…So reliability is not the most advance system but the most reliable system that we can work on,” he said.

Cabrera said MacDonald will help the city’s technical team in reviewing the at least 17 proposals for the establishment of waste-to-energy facility at the Inayawan landfill.

The proponents include Best Trade Company, Metro Pacific of Pangilinan Group, New Sky, NECO, JFA from Yokohama, and Western Power, among others.

The establishment of WTE facility at the controversial landfill was part of the rehabilitation plan of the city government. —FPL (FREEMAN)