LGUs not ready for Tarlac landfill closure

CAPAS, Tarlac — Local government units using the Kalangitan sanitary landfill in this town are unprepared for the immediate closure of the garbage facility, pointing out that disposal costs would spiral out of control should they be forced to transfer to another site.

Gener Tanhueco, Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer (MENRO) of this town, said in a forum on Monday, October 14,  that Capas doesn’t pay any tipping fee at Kalangitan, as it is given such privilege as the host municipality.

However, the town would have to pay some P15 million annually for some 70 metric tons of waste it generates daily, should the Kalangitan facility be closed, Tanhueco said.

Worse, it would lose P10 million in annual revenue share from the landfill should Kalangitan cease operation. “That would be a huge blow to the local economy, so, we’re praying that it won’t close,” Tanhueco added.

The sanitary landfill, which is operated by the Metro Clark Waste Management Corp. (MCWMC) since 2003, is located at Sitio Kalangitan, in this town, but within the Subzone D of the Clark Special Economic Zone. It employs 330 regular workers, with more than 80 percent of the total coming from Capas.

MCWMC said it has a lease agreement with the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) for the operation of the 100-hectare landfill site until 2049. However, CDC and its parent agency, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), maintained that MCWMC’s contract has expired last October 5, thus the ensuing confusion and legal ruckus.

Tanhueco also said that Capas has become a hub for several companies that treat hazardous wastes because of its proximity to the Kalangitan landfill.

“If the closure happens, where would they dispose of the hazardous hospital wastes?” he asked.

Tarlac City faces the same dilemma, said Albert Tañedo, the officer in charge of the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO). He said that with some 150 to 160 metric tons of wastes generated daily, tipping fee alone reaches P52 million yearly, while handling costs P82 million.

“Should Kalangitan landfill close and we’d have to dispose of garbage elsewhere, our expenses would double because of the distance.