Imee Marcos pitches biomass to solve garbage woes

CEBU, Philippines — Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos vows to help solve the garbage problem in Cebu by inviting investors to invest in biomass technology.

Marcos, who is gunning a seat in the Senate, said she has observed that garbage has been a big problem in Metro Cebu. She said that having a renewable source of energy like biomass will not only help reduce garbage problem but will also help provide clean energy source for the province.

"There is so much basura (garbage) in the city and it would be perfect for a biomass-shared facility with all the nearby cities and large towns where they can dump all their basura (garbage) this one place and generate electricity. I think that would be brilliant for Cebu,” Marcos said.

Marcos, whose province is known for renewable energy like windmill and solar power, said that the electricity generated through biomass can be feed into the national grid to bring down the prices of electricity

She said the electricity produced through biomass can be used to light up streetlights in remote areas or in 24-hour places like hospitals. In Ilocos Norte, Marcos said they cannot have the biomass technology because the province is garbage-free.

"Sa Ilocos, hindi kami pwedeng mag biomass kasi nga ang liit ng basura namin. We do not have manufacturing wastes but only agricultural wastes which sa kakuripot nang mga Ilocano, ginagamit pa yan for composting,” Marcos said.

(We cannot have biomass in Ilocos because we do not have that much garbage. We only have agricultural wastes which are often recycled by Ilocanos)

"I looked at it, there are mountains of basura and alam ba ninyo na may pera sa basura bakit hindi ginagawa? I am so mystified. There are so many entrepreneurs here and somebody should jump up and say na may pera sa basura," Marcos added.

She said she will ask investors to invest in Cebu instead in Ilocos because although they are keen on renewable energy, they just do not have enough garbage to generate electricity

"By that anyone can use electricity that is cheaper," she said.

Mandaue City Mayor Luigi Quisumbing and Vice Mayor Carlo Pontico Fortuna agreed that investing in waste-to-energy is one way to address the garbage problem in the city.

Quisumbing admitted that they are having trouble with the disposal of garbage since the closure of the Umapad dumpsite. The city is currently throwing its garbage in a private facility in Consolacion.

Quisumbing acknowledged the need to reduce the volume of garbage generated in the city. He said the city government is planning to ban single-use plastics in the city. (FREEMAN)