Global Situation
Currently, the global waste production is 3.6 million metric tons per day with each person producing an average of 0.64 kg per day. Projection 1.3 billion tonnes per year today to 2.2 billion tonnes per year by 2025, is projected to raise the annual global costs from $205 billion to $375 billion.
With the population increasing, this global rate of waste production is also increasing to such point we will be needing more than one earth to absorb all our wastes in few years. While recycling is agressively promoted and given incentive to address solid waste problem, the industry will probably experience a global bottle neck with the China’s current stricter import restriction on recyclable materials. 2
National situation, Philippines Experience
While Philippines’ daily rate of waste generation is 29,315 metric tons with each person generating 0.50 kg of waste per day 3, tourism areas could have different picture. It’s gotten to bad that it was well highlighted in National Geographic’s June 2018 Issue titled Plastic or Planet.
The Pasig River once flowed majestically through downtown Manila, capital of the Philippines, and emptied into pristine Manila Bay. It was a treasured waterway and civic point of pride. It’s now listed among the top 10 rivers in the world that convey plastic waste to the sea. As many as 72,000 tons flow downstream each year, mostly during the monsoon. In 1990 the Pasig was declared biologically dead.
Local situation, El Nido’s Experience
In 2016, the Municipal Government of El Nido hired the service of a consultant to conduct a study that would eventually revise the existing Municipal Solid Waste Management Plan.
The study revealed that in 2015 the four barangays of El Nido ( Corong-corong, Buena Suerte, Masagana and Maligaya) produced 22.4 metric tons per day from 2.4 metric tons per day in 2005.
The increase in population lead to an increase in waste. However the most striking note waseach personproduced 3kg (in 2015) per day versus 1 kg per day (in 2007).
*Note hazardous materials aren’t sited in the study as it wasn’t part of the study
The municipal government currently runs the municipal waste management system. In 2015, it spent PhP15,000,000.00 for the whole year. However, it’s actual garbage fee collection from business establishments is only PhP1,107,212.00, forcing it to re-channel PhP13,892,788.00 that could have been used in other investments. While there could be a revenue from sales of recyclable materials, it remains to show its economic feasibility considering that the market for such recyclable materials is either in Puerto Princesa or in Metro Manila. Moreover, there are still doubts that in spite of this PhP15-million annual budget, the waste management system as currently implemented may not have complied in the provisions set by RA 9003 or the Ecological Waste Management Act of 2000.
Originally published in ESTEL Magazine Issue 4, June 2018 see below.
Updated June 2018 for website. Co-written by: Ignacio Sayajon and Mark-Anthony Villaflor
