DIRTY JOB A payloader operator shovels mounds of imported garbage left in a recycling facility in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental. The Bureau of Customs says the remaining volume of trash is too much for one cargo ship, prompting the agency to postpone the reshipment of waste to South Korea. —FROILAN GALLARDO
TAGOLOAN, Misamis Oriental, Philippines — A group of six boys, led by 13-year-old Jesmar Nabong, frequents the abandoned waste recycling plant here every afternoon to scavenge among the mounds of garbage from South Korea.
“We come here after classes every day. We also come here on Saturdays and Sundays,” Nabong said.“There is so much garbage left here … and many of my neighbors come here every afternoon,” added Nabong, who said proceeds from their scavenging activities went to their school needs and food for their families.
When the Bureau of Customs (BOC) began shipping back the containers of mostly plastic waste to South Korea, Nabong and his companions were counting weeks to look for another site where they could scavenge.
But recently, BOC port collector John Simon said there was so much waste to be returned to South Korea and the capacity of the contracted ships fell short of the actual volume.
‘Too much’
This prompted Simon to call off the reshipment of the trash until a full accounting of its volume is determined.
“The shipper lied in their declaration. This is simply too much for 5,100 metric tons,” Simon said, pointing at the mounds of household waste still in the open facility of Verde Soko (Philippines) Industrial Corp. here.
Simon said a team of workers from Philippine Sinter Corp. and the Department of Public Works and Highways had been working round-the-clock to put the trash into bags in preparation for shipment.
“The workers have bagged enough waste to fill 50 containers, but still there is so much waste lying around,” he said.
Simon said 2,500 metric tons of garbage would have been shipped back to its port of origin in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, on Feb. 23.
Officials of the shipper, Verde Soko, have not been seen after the National Bureau of Investigation filed criminal charges against them.
The waste, declared as materials for Verde Soko’s recycling facility, arrived here in two shipments — one weighing 1,400 metric tons and another 5,100 metric tons.
The 1,400-metric ton cargo was already shipped back to South Korea in January 2019.
Last month, some 2,400 metric tons were shipped back, leaving only 2,700 metric tons, a figure that Simon no longer believes as accurate.
On Feb. 16, another 50 containers of waste were sent back. Despite the two shipments, Simon said a considerable volume of garbage was left behind at the facility of Verde Soko.
Tagoloan Mayor Gomer Sabio said most of the garbage is laid out in the open, exposed to the elements.
Sabio said they have detailed a team of policemen at the facility to drive away scavengers.