Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte announced on Tuesday that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has informed the city government that it is resuming efforts to proceed with the Waste-To-Energy (WTE) project.
It can be recalled that in February this year, DENR notified the city that it was “putting on hold” the Davao WTE Project citing that solid waste management is primarily a local government undertaking.
“Hence, the funding support that we request from them may not be justified. This was a change from their previous commitment to support our city and the Japanese Government on this project. However, just recently, the DENR has informed us that they are resuming efforts to proceed with the project, specifically funding support from them by the year 2026,” the mayor said in his recent State of the City Address (SOCA).
Based on its design, the WTE plant has a capacity of 600 metric tons and the ability to generate up to 12 megawatts of energy.
Davao City, with a population of 1.6 million, generates a daily average of 600 to 650 tons of garbage, as per data from the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO). The existing challenge lies in the accumulation of waste at the city’s sanitary landfill in Barangay New Carmen, Tugbok District.
Since 2016, the landfill has surpassed its full capacity, accumulating 900,000 tons against the intended 700,000 to 800,000 tons.
The WTE project is among the city’s efforts in addressing waste in the city.
The mayor mentioned that the city government of Davao recognizes that a sustainable environment must be at the core of all their efforts in various sectors, for they cannot hope to achieve progress if the people do not take care of the environment.
The mayor reminded everyone especially housing developers and construction companies, to comply with the environmental policies of the city.
“While we continue to push for development, we must always ensure environmental sustainability. Ayaw ninyo pamutla ang mga punoan basta basta lang. If it is indeed unavoidable to cut trees, you must plant ten more for every tree that will be displaced. We take pride in the city’s flora and fauna and these must be protected and conserved. Ayaw hilabti ang mga punoan ug ang mga mananap,” the mayor said.
Meanwhile, in July of last year, the city issued a memorandum to all barangay captains for strict compliance with the Davao City Ecological Solid Waste Management Ordinance, to mitigate the risk of flooding caused by garbage clogging our drainage system and waterways.
The city government instructed them to increase awareness campaigns to educate residents, strengthen enforcement of penalties for non-compliance, promote community engagement, and establish a reporting system for open dumping and garbage accumulations in their barangays.
“Dili magpataka og labay sa basura,” the mayor said.
In terms of wastewater management, Duterte said the city is focused on the eventual establishment of a comprehensive wastewater sewerage system that will improve health and sanitation in the city.
He reported that last April, they had the kick-off meeting with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the implementation of the Masterplan Study for Comprehensive Wastewater Management in Davao City.
“The study is now ongoing, with the JICA project team having already come up with initial findings and household surveys,” he said.
The mayor also said that the city’s Ancillary Services Unit (ASU) oversees the Bantay Dagat and River Banks Clean-up program, which aims to protect and maintain the cleanliness of Davao City’s coastal areas.
He reported that from July 2023 to April 2024, 350 volunteers have collected 22,161 sacks of waste.
A total of 285 active Bantay Bukid volunteers were employed for different functions such as environmental law enforcement, rainforest preservation, and biodiversity monitoring in the city’s watershed and conservation areas.
Duterte also cited the Local Climate Change Action Plan seeks to secure the city’s development gains and sustainability efforts by building disaster-resilient, climate change-adaptive communities.
He said that a crucial component of this is the Climate and Disaster Risk Assessment (CDRA), which determines the level of exposure, vulnerability, and risks of various thematic areas such as food security, water sufficiency, sustainable energy, human security, and ecological stability, to disasters.
The mayor said the CDRA Technical Working Group is currently working on updating this risk assessment.
