Mounds of garbage were seen outside the regional office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Region 11 (DENR 11) in Lanang, Davao City, on Friday, as tensions escalated over the closure of the New Carmen Sanitary Landfill in Barangay New Carmen, Tugbok District.
The closure order has caused disruption to the city’s waste disposal operations and raised public sanitation concerns.
The buildup of garbage comes amid an ongoing dispute between the city government of Davao and DENR over the suspension of landfill operations ordered by Environment Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna.
In a statement issued on Friday, Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte said the city had already begun developing a new sanitary landfill adjacent to the existing facility as early as 2024, with preparations for alternative waste disposal systems underway prior to the recent incident.
He said the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) for the project has already been secured, with only the completion of the loading bay remaining. The facility is expected to be finished by June 16, 2026.
The mayor maintained that the existing landfill could safely resume operations while corrective measures are ongoing.
“As we have consistently maintained, our observations and practical assessment indicate that conditions at the existing landfill have reached a point where operations may safely resume while the remaining corrective measures are being implemented,” he said.
Duterte added that if the city’s recommendation is considered, the need to use the DENR 11 office as a temporary garbage collection point may no longer be necessary once the new facility becomes operational.
“Above all, we remain guided by our responsibility to safeguard the health, dignity, and well-being of the people of Davao,” he said.
The June 5 statement followed an earlier pronouncement by the mayor on June 4, where he criticized DENR’s decision to suspend landfill operations.
“Garbage collection operations are currently experiencing delays due to the closure of the New Carmen Sanitary Landfill as ordered by DENR. The longer this situation continues, the greater the risk of a public health and sanitation problem—not because of the waste itself, but because of the bureaucratic inaptitude of DENR,” he said.
According to Duterte, residents living near the landfill had already been evacuated and immediate threats to human life had been addressed.
He argued that corrective measures could have been undertaken without fully halting landfill operations.
“Instead, DENR chose to suspend the entire operation without providing a clear timeline for reopening,” he added.
To address the growing volume of uncollected waste, Duterte said the city has identified additional collection points, including an area in front of the DENR 11 office.
“We have identified additional collection points, including one in front of the DENR 11 office, so they can personally appreciate the volume of garbage that accumulates when an essential public service is halted indefinitely,” he said.
The mayor emphasized that the city government of Davao is complying with regulatory requirements while seeking practical solutions to the waste management issue.
“We are complying with all requirements. We only hope that decisions affecting around 750 tons of waste daily and nearly two million Dabawenyos are guided not only by regulations, but also by practical realities and common sense,” he said.
