Landfill operator objects dump site's reopening

MANILA, Philippines - The landfill operator in Rizal province has objected to the dump site’s reopening and questioned the discount offered by the host municipal government to garbage haulers. Solid Waste Integrated Management Specialist, Inc. (SWIMS), a private company that operates the closed 14-hectare landfill in Rodriguez, Rizal, on Tuesday said the 40% discount in tipping fee offered by Rodriguez Mayor Pedro S. Cuerpo "has no leg to stand on since that facility has long been closed down because the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) and other government environmental agencies have determined that its usefulness is over." "We have no intention of reopening it," SWIMS legal counsel Andy Santiago said in a statement. Mr. Cuerpo recently announced the reopening of the 14-hectare Montalban Solid Waste Disposal Facility and the 40% discount to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and other garbage haulers who plan to use it. No certification Mr. Santiago also questioned Mr. Cuerpo’s claim that the NSWMC issued a certification on the 50-year life-span of the landfill. "There is no such certification." The NSWMC was not answering telephone calls made Tuesday. Mr. Cuerpo recently said the discount is to ensure continuous input for the methane gas requirement of the Montalban Methane Power Corp. (MMPC). A methane gas power generation plant, the P1.5-billion MMPC has been contracted by the Rodriguez government to build and operate the municipality’s landfill gas-to-power facility. — Elizabeth T. Marcelo, BusinessWorld