Green group lauds Manila’s move to fix crematorium

MANILA, Philippines - Environmentalists lauded a move by the Manila city government to fix the public crematorium after it was found to be violating the Clean Air Act.

“We find the remedial steps being undertaken by the Manila Health Department (MHD) very encouraging. We trust that all environmental control measures will be satisfactorily fulfilled to allow the crematory to resume its service in a manner that will not pollute the surroundings and harm the public health,” Ecowaste Coalition national coordinator Aileen Lucero said yesterday.

Last Tuesday, EcoWaste received a copy of MHD’s response to the Notice of Violations (NOV) issued by Vizminda Osorio, regional director of the Environmental Management Bureau-National Capital Region (EMB-NCR) on Nov. 29.

Osorio said the crematorium violated provisions of the Clean Air Act’s implementing rules and regulations and other environmental measures.

The group had earlier complained to the EMB-NCR about the crematory’s lack of a permit to operate, which expired on May 13, 2014, and its air pollution emissions.    

In his reply to the NOV, acting city health officer Dr. Benjamin Yson promised to secure a permit to operate for the crematorium and register the facility as a hazardous waste generator. 

The MHD likewise confirmed that “corresponding fees and penalties shall be paid” with a request for reduced amounts since the crematorium provides free cremation for the remains of indigents.

To lower the crematorium stack emissions to “acceptable levels,” the MHD vowed to replace or install pollution control devices.

According to the MHD, 770 bodies were cremated in 2015 at the facility. For the past three quarters of 2016, 573 remains were cremated there.