FOLLOWING the closure of Inayawan Sanitary Landfill, the Cebu City Government has appropriated P2.5 million for a closure and rehabilitation plan including the damage and risk assessment of the facility.
The amount, which was charged to the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, was approved by Mayor Michael Rama.
With the approval, Rama said, the Solid Waste Management Board should start working on the things needed for the landfill.
“It’s long overdue; they should already act on it now after the approval,” Rama said.
The move is an offshoot of the declaration of a state of calamity at the landfill last month.
In a committee report, Councilor Ma. Nida Cabrera said that since the area is a waste disposal facility, the site is covered by guidelines of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Cabrera is the Council’s committee on environment chairperson.
Assessment
DENR Administrative Order 09 Series of 2006, or the General Guidelines in the Closure and Rehabilitation of Open Dump Sites and Controlled Dump Facilities, requires the local government unit to come up with a preliminary closure assessment and comprehensive and relevant assessment.
The City is also required to prepare and implement a closure and rehabilitation plan, which will be part of the overall implementation of the solid waste management plan.
Then the City Government will submit the closure plan to the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) regional office for review and implementation.
Site assessment
Cabrera said the closure and rehabilitation plan will be formulated after a site assessment in the landfill.
The site assessment will include site clearing, site grading and stabilization of critical slopes, application and maintenance of soil cover, provision of drainage control system, leachate management, gas management, fencing and security, putting up of appropriate signs and prohibition of burning at the dump site.
Cabrera said the risk assessment should be done by the Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Committee of Inayawan, as recommended by DENR.