October closure for landfill ‘impossible’

IT would take a year for the Cebu City government to completely close the Inayawan landfill site, provided its closure plan is approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Councilor Nida Cabrera gave the estimate as she described as “impossible” the city government’s target to close the dumpsite by October this year.
She said she will meet with various agencies to draft the closure plan on June 3-4.

The city government already imposed a June 1 deadline on the ban on septic waste dumping in the Inayawan landfill.

Four septic waste haulers met with Inayawan landfill head Randy Navarro to seek a three-month extension on the ban.

“We just cannot close the landfill immediately,” Cabrera told Cebu Daily News.

She said it will take sometime before the DENR completes its review of the landfill closure plan.

Navarro said representatives of Cebu Septic Tank Suction and Manual Services, JCM Septic Tank Services, Southern Septic Tank Services and Lin John Septic Tank Suction Manual and Plumbing Services asked that the ban be delayed until August this year.

“They said they will find it difficult to search for another septic waste dumpsite,” Navarro said.

He said they may look outside of Cebu City, which is more expensive.

Rama gave the June 1 deadline after learning that leachates or wastewater coming from the soaked garbage of the landfill continue to flow to the Mactan Channel.

The landfill’s wastewater treatment facility is in a state of disrepair.

The landfill was also placed under calamity status by the City Council last Wednesday.

The city’s hauler that is manned by the Department of Public Service (DPS) will not be allowed to dump septic waste on the landfill, Navarro said. Correspondent Fatrick Tabada