THE damaged bridge in Barangay Bacayan has slowed the movement of garbage trucks headed to the Binaliw landfill, putting Cebu City’s waste disposal system under strain and prompting urgent calls for short-term and long-term solutions.
During the City Council’s session on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025, Councilor Joel Garganera, chairman of the committee on environment, warned that the City cannot afford to wait for the bridge to be fully repaired before taking action.
He said garbage trucks that previously made two to three trips daily can now complete just one due to the bridge’s weight limitations.
The bridge was affected by heavy rains, flash floods and landslides brought by Typhoon Tinio on Nov. 4.
The Department of Engineering and Public Works told the council that structural assessment may take a week, while repairs could extend beyond a month, depending on the findings and weather conditions.
“With limited truck turnaround, we risk waste piling up in barangays if we do not adjust immediately,” he said.
To ease pressure on Binaliw, Garganera urged commercial establishments to temporarily hire private waste haulers or dispose of their garbage in other accredited facilities until access routes stabilize.
He emphasized stricter waste segregation, noting that many establishments still send recyclable materials straight to landfills.
For residents, Garganera encouraged households to reduce waste and turn over recyclables to junk shops.
He said a single plastic bottle per household, multiplied across an estimated 250,000 families, could already prevent an estimated eight tons of plastic from entering the landfill.
He also pushed for the City to revisit the clustering of material recovery facilities (MRFs) in barangays, saying many communities want to recycle but lack the infrastructure and logistical support from the city.
Garganera questioned why PrimeWaste, the operator of the Binaliw landfill, has not yet installed a real-time monitoring system at City Hall despite assuring the Solid Waste Management Board earlier this year. The system was intended to enhance transparency, track disposal volume and ensure compliance.
Garganera said the City must also know how the landfill is managing truck sanitation, traffic flow and worker safety, given the congestion caused by the bridge damage.
He further raised concern over the still-unissued cease and desist order against two quarry operators in Barangay Binaliw, which the City Council requested on Sept. 9 following reports from the City Environment and Natural Resources Office.
He warned that quarry trucks could add to the already congested and damaged mountain roads, affecting garbage transport and ongoing clearing operations.
Garganera said the bridge situation is a reminder that Cebu City’s waste system remains vulnerable because it relies heavily on landfilling.
With NewSky backing out of a proposed joint venture agreement to put a waste-to-energy project earlier this year, he said the City must revisit its Solid Waste Management Plan and begin exploring modern waste technologies and diversified disposal systems.
“If we continue to rely on one landfill and one access road, we remain exposed,” he said. “Now is the opportunity to rethink how we Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Redirect our waste.”
Garganera then moved for several resolutions strongly encouraging commercial establishments, private waste haulers, nearby local government units and residents to temporarily reduce, divert and reroute waste while bridge repairs are ongoing. / CAV