DENR-7 orders stop to Cebu City’s SRP waste transfer station operations

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) has ordered Cebu City to stop using a portion of the South Road Properties (SRP) as a garbage transfer station, citing environmental violations and the lack of required permits.

The directive comes as the city continues efforts to clear tons of accumulated waste from the site after months of disposal disruptions caused by the closure of its primary landfill.

READ: SRP turned into waste staging area amid Cebu City’s landfill crisis

Violation of environmental laws

Engineer Rizalina Saberon, chief of the Environmental Management Bureau in Central Visayas (EMB-7) Clearance and Permitting Division, said the agency issued a cease-and-desist order against the city government on June 7.

Speaking during a press conference on Thursday, Saberon said the city violated environmental laws when it used the SRP site for waste operations.

“They have a violation. Kato pa lang daan pag [labay] nila, violation na to (The act of dumping waste there had already been a violation),” Saberon said.

She explained that the activity ran contrary to Republic Act No. 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, which prohibits the dumping of unsegregated waste and the operation of open dumpsites.

READ: SRP garbage cleared but buried waste remains; city to resume use

“The area is not a dumping site,” she said. “We have already given them a notice of violation, wherein we have to let them correct what they have done in that area.”

Saberon said the city government also failed to obtain the environmental permits and clearances required before conducting waste-related operations at Pond A in the SRP.

She noted that the city should have secured environmental approvals and complied with the Environmental Impact Statement System under Presidential Decree 1586.

Clearing operations

According to Saberon, EMB-7 has already convened a technical conference with city officials to discuss the violations and identify corrective measures.

During the meeting, both parties agreed that the waste stockpile at the SRP site should be cleared within 60 to 90 days.

Mayor Nestor Archival earlier announced that the city had started removing the accumulated garbage after hauling operations to Aloguinsan resumed on June 1.

Saberon said EMB-7 continues to monitor activities at the site to ensure compliance with the agreed-upon cleanup measures.

READ: SRP garbage station used despite DENR disapproval

Waste stockpile

Cebu City’s waste management problems began after the closure of the Prime Waste Solutions Inc. landfill in Barangay Binaliw following the deadly trash slide on January 8.

The city initially diverted its waste to a privately operated landfill in Barangay Polog, Consolacion, before disposal activities stopped due to reported concerns with payment.

In February, the city began transporting garbage to Pond A at the SRP after designating the area as a temporary transfer station while waste was being hauled to Aloguinsan.

Around three months later, the city reached the disposal volume allowed under its agreement with the private landfill operator.

By mid-May, garbage started piling up at the SRP site as officials searched for alternative disposal options, including the possible reopening of the Binaliw landfill.

At that time, the city was waiting for the results of a safety assessment being conducted by the Waste Crisis Task Force at the closed landfill facility.

With the evaluation still ongoing, Cebu City resumed hauling its waste to Aloguinsan at the start of June.

READ: DENR seeks Baste Duterte explanation over garbage dumping in Davao City

Cooperation needed

DENR-7 Regional Director Laudemir Salac said sustained coordination between environmental authorities and the city government was necessary to address the problem.

“They have to do the cleanup and once and for all, decide to dispose of their garbage in a sanitary landfill approved by the DENR,” Salac said.

Salac acknowledged that transporting waste to Aloguinsan entailed significant costs for the city government.

He added that the reopening of the Binaliw landfill could help ease the burden on Cebu City’s waste disposal operations.

“We also want to help them find the solution,” Salac said.

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