UNDP asks Samar town to prioritize waste management

BASEY, Samar, Nov. 30 (PNA) -- The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) asked the local government here to step up waste segregation and recycling program in compliance with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.

UNDP Country Director Titon Mitra said that for their funded projects - sanitary landfill and water treatment facility - to work efficiently, the local government must cascade to the grassroots level the importance of proper waste management and segregation.

“Unless people understand solid waste management, the facility can actually become a white elephant.

 That is why I challenge the local government to direct people in villages to recycle their waste,” Mitra said.

With people doing recycling activities in the community, waste that will be dumped at the landfill would be minimal.

“The growing or increasing number of population has significant effects to environment especially if people will not observe proper waste disposal and just throw their garbages anywhere,” he added.

UNDP, together with Korea International Cooperation Agency funded the sanitary landfill project of Basey town worth PHP14 million. Under the agreement, the local government provides the land.

The sanitary landfill, material recovery facility and waste water treatment facility is located inside the Basey Ecological Park with a total land area of 46,000 square meters (sqm).

About 15,000 sqm are intended for the MRF, 6 sqm cell for landfill and 600 sqm for waste water treatment.

The UNDP approved the sanitary land fill and MRF for Basey since the town is still reeling from impacts of super typhoon Yolanda and its local budget cannot finance expensive projects.

The officials added that the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act is a good law, but only few areas can comply due to budget constraints.

“Maybe there is something to be taught out on the way the budget is allocated for the local government and in any assistance that can be provided, regulations are fine, legislation is fine but it application of the legislation is very important,” Mitra said. (PNA)
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