SUMMARY

Solid waste management in general and in particular the final disposal of the waste is a complex task that has become a common problem among local government units. This is reflected in dirty public areas, waste thrown on the streets, an increase in informal activities; garbage is thrown into streams and rivers, or disposed of in open dumps; and men, women and children sort through the waste in these open dumps, under subhuman conditions, exposed to all kinds of diseases and accidents. The poor management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is a problem in most municipalities, and it is a growing problem. Among the many factors aggravating the situation are: rapid population growth and high concentration of the population in urban areas, industrial development, the widespread use of plastic film bags and lack of technical skills in the operation and management of waste disposal facilities. The basis of the report also focuses on the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act). specifically Section 37 (Prohibition Against the Use of Open Dumps for Solid Waste ) to wit: No open dumps shall be established and operated, nor any practice or disposal of solid waste by any person, including LGUs, which constitutes the use of open dumps for solid wastes, be allowed after the effectivity of this Acts: Provided, That within three (3) years after the effectivity of this Act, every LGU shall convert its open dumps into controlled dumps, in accordance with the guidelines set in Sec. 41 of this Act: Provided, further, that no controlled dumps shall be allowed five (5) years following the effectivity of this Act. For LGUs to be compliant on the clear provisions of the law, last May 18-21, 2010, the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist-Environment and Natural Resources Division (OPAg-ENRD), Provincial Health Office (PHO), together with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) Region 1, and the Solid Waste Management Association of the Philippines (SWAPP) conducted a multipartite site assessment and evaluation of the existing conditions of the municipal waste disposal facilities/dumpsite as part of the Solid Waste Management component of the Integrated Support for Sustainable Urban Environment (ISSUE 2) Programme under the aegis Sanitasyon Para Kadatayo Amin. During the said on-site assessment, most if not all the LGU need to improve the operational management of their respective dumpsites to make it compliant to the provisions of R.A. 9003. Again on August 12-13, 2010, a Coaching and Mentoring Workshop on the Operational Management of Waste Disposal Facilities was conducted as a 2nd part of PGLUs technical assistance. Important parts of the coachin are the presentation of the findings of the operation and management of the different dumpsites, the recommended actions, intervention and a workshop. The Coaching Session also includes technical discussion and engineering works to further improve the technical skills of WDF operators. From July until September this year, a monitoring of the operational management of the Waste Disposal Facilities was conducted purposely to validate quantifiable improvements in the operation and management of their respective waste disposal facilities as part of the Sustainability Phase of the ISSUE 2 Programme.

F. OBSERVATIONS Based on Table 2, the following observations were made: Landfill Management Most WDF have no systematic unloading of waste and hygienic practice in the maintenance of their facilities. This is manifested by foul odor, scattered and exposed wastes, presence of vermin and untrained on-site personnel. The regular practice of spreading, levelling, compacting and soil covering is being practiced by the towns of Luna, Caba, Naguilian and Agoo. Ravine type WDF is being maintained by the municipalities of Naguilian, Aringay, Bauang, Rosario,Tubao and Pugo The WDF of Bauang, Pugo, Tubao has no or limited compaction of dumped waste. Systematic soil covering of wastes is regularly done by Caba,and Agoo. Partial soil covering is done by Sudipen, Luna, Naguilian, Aringay and Rosario. Caba and Luna exemplify best practice in odor control and the only WDF without odor due to regular soil covering of waste. The other municipal WDF including that of Agoo has foul odor due to exposed waste especially during the rainy season. Occupational safety Most WDF have stray animals such as cows, goats, dogs, and chicken aside from flies, mosquitoes and birds. Grazing is not allowed inside WDF due to sanitation hazard. Birds are potential carriers of pests and diseases. Wearing of Personal Protection Equipments (PPE) is not a common practice. Some municipalities issue PPE to their personnel but do not use them citing comfort over safety. Hazardous wastes are mixed in the landfill. All WDF have no proper collection and storage of domestic hazardous wastes such as CFL, TV picture tubes, etc. All WDF have no provisions for fire prevention. Safety measures are not a priority.

Observations in the environmental management in the operation of WDF: 1. The WDF of Luna, Balaoan, Santol, San Gabriel and Naguilian are the only facilities with on-site office. 2. All WDF has no on-site documents such as ECC, plans, etc as provided by 3. All WDF has not conducted surface water monitoring on nearby creeks, rivers or spring. 4. All WDF has not conducted monitoring of leachate effluent from their collection and treatment facility. 5. WDF which has no Leachate Collection and Treatment Facility are Luna, San Juan, Bagulin, Bauang, Caba, Aringay, Tubao and Pugo 6. WDF which have but non-functional Leachate Collection and treatment Facility are Sudipen, Bacnotan, San Gabriel, Naguilian and Rosario. 7. Except for Agoo, Bangar and Balaoan, all the other WDF have no provision for gas vent.
Key results