Gov't units inspect 9 Subic recyclers amid alleged US e-waste shipments

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT, Zambales — Government agencies have conducted a joint inspection of nine recycling companies inside this freeport following allegations by environmental groups that hundreds of containers of electronic waste (e-waste) from the United States had entered the country.

In a statement issued on Sunday (July 5), the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said it joined an inspection led by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources–Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) on July 1.

“The inspection was undertaken in connection with reports involving suspected electronic waste (e-waste) and forms part of government efforts to ensure compliance with environmental and customs regulations and to protect public health and the environment,” the statement said.

Article continues after this advertisement

The BOC did not identify the recycling locators inspected or disclose the preliminary findings.

FEATURED STORIES

NEWSINFO

NEWSINFO

NEWSINFO

However, it said an interagency meeting has been scheduled for Monday (July 6), during which the DENR-EMB’s official findings, if already available, will be discussed and presented to invited stakeholders, including several non-government organizations.

“The BOC, DENR, and SBMA remain committed to supporting inter-agency efforts to uphold the law and promote environmental sustainability while safeguarding the public interest,” it added.

The inspection came more than a week after the Task Force Against Illegal E-Waste Imports to the Philippines revealed during a press conference in Manila that at least 234 containers of suspected e-waste and one container of plastic waste from the United States had been arriving at the Subic Bay Freeport since March.

The task force is a coalition campaigning against the alleged entry of foreign e-waste into the country.

Article continues after this advertisement

The group said the shipments were traced through “Operation Can Opener,” an initiative of the international Basel Action Network that uses trade data and GPS trackers placed on discarded electronics to monitor hazardous waste shipments from the United States.

The task force argued that the alleged shipments may violate the Basel Convention, the international treaty governing the transboundary movement of hazardous waste.

Article continues after this advertisement

It also questioned whether shipments entering the freeport are subject to the Prior Informed Consent mechanism and other import requirements under Philippine environmental laws.

The inspection marks the first publicly disclosed government action since the allegations of illegal e-waste shipments. /apl

Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.

Your subscription has been successful.