CEBU City opposition Councilor Joel Garganera wants the consultant on the closure and rehabilitation plan for the 15-hectare Inayawan Sanitary Landfill to clarify some points in the proposal.

During the executive session on Tuesday, April 23, Garganera said the consultant’s proposal to convert the 3.6-hectare service area of the landfill into a 10-megawatt waste-to-energy (WTE) facility should be clarified.

This is because according to the proposal, the consultant believes that the area is not covered by the Writ of Kalikasan.

“The Writ of Kalikasan issued by the Court of Appeals (CA) covered the entire 15-hectare facility. So what is their basis in saying that they believe that the area is not covered by the writ?” Garganera said in an interview.

In 2016, the CA Special 19th Division granted the Writ of Kalikasan and ordered the permanent closure of the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill.

The Supreme Court also affirmed the decision of the CA.

Garganera filed the petition against Mayor Tomas Osmeña; Engr. William Cunado, officer-in-charge of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) 7; and Emma Melana, chief of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) 7, before the CA.

Garganera sought the issuance of a temporary environmental protection order to “stop a looming environmental catastrophe.”

The Writ of Kalikasan is a legal remedy to protect one’s constitutional right to a healthy environment.

The Full Advantage Phils International Inc. (FAPII) drafted the final safe closure and rehabilitation plan of the landfill.

FAPII recommended that the area will be converted into an industrial or economic zone, recreational eco-park, and WTE facility.

Because of the voluminous documents on the plan, councilors asked that they be given enough time to go over the proposal as copies were distributed to them a day before the executive session.

The City Council has scheduled another executive session on the matter in June. (RVC)