THE City Government of Naga will start treating household septage waste early this month.
This after its P80-million septage treatment facility had been completed last month and had started operating in Barangay Naalad.
Engineer Arthur Villamor, City of Naga administrator, told SunStar Cebu that following the completion of the septage treatment facility, they started offering free extraction services for households in the city.
But Villamor clarified that the free extraction service is one time only and households who plan to avail of a subsequent extraction will be required to pay a fee.
As of Friday, around 335 households in the City of Naga have availed of the free extraction services while around 60 are still pending.
Villamor said the construction of the septage treatment facility started during the administration of former City of Naga Mayor Valdemar Chiong.
In 2015, Chiong signed an agreement with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) to loan P80 billion for the construction of the septage treatment facility.
With the completion of the facility, the City Government of Naga can put an end to the indiscriminate dumping of untreated sludge on land or waterways within the city, said Villamor.
While this facility can treat septic sludge, it cannot cater to wastewater treatment.
But Villamor said that in terms of wastewater treatment, they have started installing wastewater treatment facilities (WTF) in city-owned establishments like the new public market in Barangay South Poblacion.
The city also plans to install WTFs in other city-owned buildings like City Hall and the local police and fire stations.
Villamor said they are targeting for the long-term eradication of wastewater and septage contamination within their major waterways and seas.
He added that the city is contemplating on requiring large and medium enterprises doing business with the city to provide their own WTFs but it still needs consultation. (JKV/SunStar Cebu)