CEBU City Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia is set to visit the Barangay Binaliw sanitary landfill following complaints from residents of the persisting stench believed to be emanating from the site.
“To see is to believe; to smell is to believe,” he said in a press conference on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, at the Casino de Español, adding that he just learned about the issue right before the long weekend and expressed his concern on the matter.
However, he said he could not give feedback yet since he would visit the area first before making any comments.
He said that he would write a letter to Prime Integrated Waste Solution Inc., saying that he would visit their plant to see if the foul smell comes from their operations.
He said that by the time he visits there, he will be bringing with him the heads of City Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Public Services.
He added that he will also bring with him other concerned departments that can give him more information regarding the situation at the landfill.
“As I’ve said, we don’t know if the smell is coming from the operations or if it’s coming from anywhere else,” said Garcia.
In a follow-up interview with the reporters, Garcia said that he already sent a team to check on the site following the reports reached to him.
He said that the team has not reported to him yet since they visited the area last Aug. 22.
“But again, me, I want to see it for myself, I want to smell it for myself,” said Garcia.
SunStar Cebu tried to reach out to Razon-led Prime Integrated Waste Solutions Inc., the firm that manages the sanitary landfill, but calls remain unanswered.
In a previous SunStar report, residents around the sanitary landfill called on the local officials to address the foul smell coming from the garbage.
Bebing Leogan, president of the homeowner’s association near the sanitary landfill, said in a phone interview on Aug. 19, that the foul smell, as in a dead animal’s smell, continues to occur, especially when it rains.
She added that the foul odor usually occurs at night.
Leogan said that their neighborhood is just one kilometer away from the landfill.
Dar Omandam, a resident of Woodland Subdivision in Barangay Binaliw, said in a media interview on Aug. 19, that the smell is rotten and sometimes smells like feces. He added that the foul smell gets worse when it rains.