Pangasinan landfill ordered closed anew

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has again ordered the closure of a sanitary landfill in Urdaneta, Pangasinan after it was found out that the facility is still being used despite an existing cease and desist order.

The Environmental Management Bureau-Ilocos Region discovered that the facility located in Barangay Catablan remains operational despite the issuance of a cease and desist order in March this year, according to Rogelio Demelletes Jr. of the DENR-environmental law enforcement and protection service.

Demelletes said the padlocks and barricades installed at the facility had been tampered with, and fresh tire tracks were seen in the area, indicating the arrival and departure of dump trucks and other waste disposal equipment.

The EMB team found newly dumped waste at the facility.

It said the decommissioned pipe connecting the drainage to a canal leading to the Sinocalan River was opened without authorization from the DENR.

The agency said it directed the city government of Urdaneta to comply with the order.