Cordillera A+ Computer Technology College

Bersamin Bldg. Tabuk City, Kalinga 3800

e-mail add.: [email protected], Tel. No.: 0746275254, FB Page: @cactcollege

“EXCELLENCE IS OUR BUSINESS AND OUR COMMITMENT”

INTRODUCTION TO CYBERCRIME AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS

Week: 14
Topic: Other Pressing Issues about the Environment (Industrial Waste Disposal)
Learning Objectives: At the end of the lesson, the learner will be able to:
1. Discuss the risks and dangers posed by Industrial Waste Disposal.

I. LESSON DISCUSSION

Solid waste management remains a major challenge in the Philippines especially in urban areas like Metro
Manila. Improper wastes disposal, inefficient wastes collection and lack of disposal facilities are among
the dominant concerns in the country’s solid waste management. Unless these are addressed, the wastes
generated from various sources will continually lead to health hazards and serious environmental impacts
such as ground and surface water contamination, flooding, air pollution and spread of diseases. Republic Act
No. 9003 otherwise known as the “Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, enacted on
January 26, 2001, aims to address the growing problem on solid wastes in the country. It provides the
legal framework for the country’s systematic, comprehensive, and ecological solid waste management
program that shall ensure protection of public health and the environment. It also provides for the necessary
institutional mechanisms with the creation of the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC)
which shall oversee the implementation of solid waste management plans and prescribe policies as well as
incentives to achieve objectives of the Act.

SOLID WASTE GENERATION, SOURCES AND COMPOSITION

Waste Generation. The Philippines’ waste generation continues to rise with the increase in population,
improvement of living standards, rapid economic growth, and industrialization especially in the urban areas.
The NSWMC calculated that from 37,427.46 tons per day in 2012, the country’s waste generation steadily
increased to 40,087.45 tons in 2016 with an estimated average per capita waste generation of 0.40 kilograms
per day for both urban and rural. The National Capital Region (NCR), as expected, generated the biggest
volume of wastes for the past five years due to its population size, bigger number of establishments and
modernized lifestyle. With an estimated population of 12 million people, Metropolitan Manila generated
9,212.92 tons per day of wastes in 2016. It is followed by Region 4A with waste generation of 4,440.15 tons
per day (11.08%) and Region 3 with 3,890.12 tons per day (9.70 %) (NSWC).

The World Bank (2012)2 , on the other hand, estimates that solid waste being produced by Philippine cities
will go up by 165 percent to 77,776 tons per day from 29,315 tons as a consequence of a projected 47.3-
percent hike in urban population by 2025 and a projected doubling of municipal solid waste (MSW)3
generation per capita at 0.9 kilogram per day by 2025 from the current 0.5 kilogram4 , presenting a direct
correlation between the per capita level of income in cities and the amount of waste per capita that is
generated. This also indicates that the Philippines is at the low end of waste generation in the region and
among countries in its income bracket.

Waste Sources. Solid wastes are generated from residential, commercial, industrial and institutional sources.
Residential wastes accounts for more than half (57%) of the total solid wastes (e.g. kitchen scraps, yard waste,
paper and cardboards, glass bottles, etc.) Wastes from commercial sources, which include commercial
establishments and public/private markets, accounts for 27 percent. Wastes from institutional sources such as
government offices, educational and medical institutions accounts for about 12 percent while the remaining 4
percent is waste coming from the industrial or manufacturing sector (NSWMC).
Open dumping is defined as a land disposal site at which solid wastes are disposed of in a manner that does
not protect the environment and are susceptible to open burning, and are exposed to the elements, vectors and
scavengers.
Sanitary landfill a method of disposing waste on land without disturbing the environment and public health
by efficiently utilizing skills to confine them in the smallest practical area possible, before reducing the
volume by covering with a layer of earth to ensure the least exposure to the air.

Waste Composition. The country’s solid wastes typically contain more organic components than other
materials. According to NSWMC, disposed waste is dominated by biodegradable waste with 52 percent,
followed by recyclable waste which accounts for 28 percent and residuals at 18 percent. Biodegradable wastes
come mostly from food waste and yard waste while recyclable wastes include plastic packaging wastes,
metals, glass, textile, leather and rubber. The significant shares of biodegradables and recyclables indicate that
composting and recycling have great potential in reducing solid wastes.

Current Solid Waste Management

Collection. Under RA 9003, collection, transport and disposal of solid wastes are the responsibilities of
the local government units (LGUs). At present, most LGUs administer their own collection systems or
contract out this service to private contractors. In Metro Manila, the common types of collection vehicles are
open dump trucks and compactor trucks. Nationwide, about 40 to 85 percent of the solid wastes generated is
collected while in Metro Manila it is 85 percent. The poorer areas of cities, municipalities, and rural
barangays are typically unserved or under-served. Uncollected waste ends up mostly in rivers, esteros and
other water bodies, thus, polluting major water bodies and clogging the drainage systems, which results to
flooding during heavy rains (NSWMC). It is interesting to note, however, that the 85 percent collection rate of
Metro Manila is above the average collection rate of other countries in the Philippines’ income bracket
(around 69%) and among East Asia and Pacific countries (around 72%).

Waste Disposal. Open dumping remains the general practice of waste disposal in the country as controlled
dumpsites and Sanitary Landfills (SLFs)6 are very limited (NSWC). RA 9003 requires LGUs to close their
existing open dumpsites by year 2006 and to establish controlled disposal facilities or SLFs. As of 2016,
there are still 403 open dumpsites and 108 controlled dumpsites in operation. The number of SLFs is also
insufficient to service all LGUs. While SLFs increase from 48 in 2010 to 118 in 2016, LGUs with access to
SLFs remain below 15 percent. It is interesting to note that the DENR is now pushing for the establishment of
cluster sanitary landfills or common sanitary landfills in the country to address waste disposal problems.
Through cluster sanitary landfills, local government units (LGUs) may share funds in establishing sanitary
landfills and consolidate efforts on solid waste management efforts. Through cost-sharing, LGUs can save
financial resources and services. Section 13 of the Philippine Constitution provides that LGUs may group
themselves, consolidate or coordinate their efforts, services, and resources for purposes commonly beneficial
to them in accordance with law.

Diversion and Recovery. As of 2015, solid waste diversion rate in Metro Manila is 48 percent while outside
Metro Manila the rate is 46 percent. RA 9003 requires at least 25 percent of all solid wastes from waste-
disposal facilities is diverted or recovered through reuse, recycling, composting, and other resource-
recovery activities. LGUs are also mandated to put up or establish several waste facilities such as materials-
recovery facilities (MRFs)8 for processing recyclable and biodegradable waste. As of 2016, about 9,883
MRFs are in operation in the country serving 13,155 barangays (31.3% of the 42,000 barangays in the
country). The NSWMC claims that LGUs are on the right direction in the compliance of waste reduction
program being implemented in their respective jurisdictions.

Recycle Solid waste management which is the process of collecting and processing materials that would
otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products
Reuse the act of taking old items that you might consider throwing away and find a new use for them

Composting the natural process of recycling organic matter, such as leaves and food scraps, into a
valuable fertilizer that can enrich soil and plants
Local Solid Waste Management (SWM) Boards. To date, there are 55 active provincial boards, 614 active
city/municipal SWM Boards and 5,549 active Barangay SWM Committees. The Cordillera Administrative
Region (CAR) had the highest number of active local SWM Boards followed by Region 4B. The local SWM
Boards are tasked to prepare, submit and implement a plan for the safe and sanitary management of solid
wastes generated in areas under its geographic and political coverage. The Barangay SWM Committees, on
the other hand, are tasked to formulate SWM programs consistent with the City/Municipal SWM plan that is
to segregate and collect biodegradable, compostable, reusable wastes, and to establish a MRF.

Local SWM Plans. The NSWMC with the support of Environment Management Bureau (EMB) is
currently fast-tracking the approval of all LGUs that submitted their 10-year SWM plans to ensure proper
SWM systems being implemented. As of September 2017, 1,460 SWM plans have been submitted to the
NSWMC Secretariat but unfortunately, only 318 SWM plans have been approved so far. According to the
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), one of the reasons for the slow pace of approval of SWM
plans is the lack of institutional capacity by the EMB in terms of providing technical support to LGUs. The
preparation of SWM plans by LGUs was expected to be supported by EMB regional offices.

Overcoming the Challenges

More than 15 years after the passage of RA 9003, enforcement and compliance with the law remains a
daunting task due to technical, political and financial limitations of concerned agencies and LGUs. Majority
of LGUs have yet to comply with the provisions of RA 9003, particularly on the establishment of local SWM
Boards, submission of SWM Plans, establishment of MRFs, and closure of all open and controlled dumpsites.
To strengthen compliance with RA 9003, LGUs should be capacitated particularly on understanding the
provisions of the Act and in formulating SWM Plans. They assisted in designing innovative financing
mechanisms to undertake SWM activities instead of merely depending on subsidies from the national
government. They should also be given assistance on how to access facilities offered by Government
Financing Institutions (GFIs) and in engaging the private sector in order to generate funds for SWM
activities. There must be a continuing education and public awareness building to inculcate the right attitude
among the people to actively participate in SWM activities and practices. Hence, the integration of
Ecological Solid Waste Management (ESWM) in school curricula at all levels, which have been
practiced in other countries like Japan and Singapore, is highly recommended.

It is worthy to note that the Office of the Ombudsman, in collaboration with the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR)-EMB and NSWMC along with environmental groups, is currently monitoring
the compliance of LGUs to RA 9003 through its Solid Waste Management Compliance Program launched on
April 22, 2013. Under the Program, LGUs are directed to conduct self-assessment of their own compliance
status, and to voluntarily implement corrective action. The self-assessed compliance reports are validated and
ESWM Excellence Awards are conferred to LGUs with the best compliance programs. LGUs that fail to
comply will be charged administratively or criminally. In 2016, criminal and administrative charges were
filed against 50 LGUs for violations of RA 9003 provisions

Lastly, the measure (Senate Bill 370) filed in the Senate during the 16th Congress amending the Local
Government Code (R.A. 7160) to integrate solid waste collection and disposal as a basic service, and
empower the local Sanggunian to provide for this basic service should be refiled under the 17th Congress.
The measure seeks to encourage the people to advocate the said service within the LGUs where they live and
to awaken the interest of local legislators to plan and implement a system for waste collection and disposal to
awaken the interest of local legislators to plan and implement a system for waste collection and disposal.

In the House of Representatives, a number of legislative measures have been filed to strengthen the
implementation of RA 9003 through the following a) mandating all elementary and secondary schools to
adopt policies implementing solid waste management (House Bill No. 05087); b) institutionalizing rewards
for compliance (House Bill No. 05915); c) providing stiffer fines and penalties for illegal disposal of waste
materials and violation of other prohibited acts (House Bill Nos. 770 and 05668); and c) conducting review,
pursuant to the oversight function of congress, of the implementation of RA 9003 to identify the constraints
and challenges faced in enforcing its provisions (House Bill Nos. 00425 and 00547). The enactment of these
legislative proposals may aid in the effective management of solid wastes in the Philippines.

II. A. REFERENCE:
Garcia, Mario A. (2021). Introduction to Cybercrime and Environmental Crimes. Quezon City.
Wiseman’s Books Trading, Inc.
B. SUGGESTED READINGS:
The State of Hazardous Waste Management in the Philippines (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://bit.ly/3leugb2 on Nov. 29, 2021

III. REQUIREMENTS:

Activity. Essay.
Write a 30-35 sentence essay on the current condition in Kalinga on waste disposal.
a) Who are causing the problem of waste disposal.
b) What problems have been caused by this practice of waste disposal.