AS PART of its rehabilitation process, about 2,000 indigenous tree seedlings were planted by environment officials and scavengers at the Zayas landfill in Upper Dagong, Barangay Carmen, Cagayan de Oro City on Friday.
An official of the City Social Waste and Management Board (CSWMB) said the tree planting is part of the second phase of the P98 million closure and rehabilitation project of the open dump site.
Elvisa Mabelin of CSWMB said a total of five hectares will be covered by the second tree-growing project where teak wood, acacia, narra, and golden shower tree seedlings will soon stand.
The first round of the tree planting project was conducted last October where one thousand seedlings were planted.
Phase-II of the project will cover the drainage system in the dumpsite where pipes intended to drain garbage leachate.
The liquid substances will then be collected to be processed so that it can be used to water the plants around the dump, which leads to the tree growing or vegetation process.
Gases coming out from the surface will also be managed by building gas vents to contain them and avoid a fire reaction in the dumpsite.
Social engineering, the last part of the phase is intended to empower the scavengers or the members of the Mangaykayay Association by giving opportunities for other forms of livelihood.
Mabelin said the scavengers will also be trained to operate the city's new Materials Recovery Facility (MRF).
The MRF is designed to receive, sort, process, and store compostable and recyclable materials in a sound manner.
"Kung sa start pa lamang sa implementation sa Republic Act 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act) nagsugod pud ta diri sa siyudad, mura na nig parke ang atong dumpsite. But we're positive pud na mahuman na unta gayud ni finally," she added.