Employees, volunteers, gov’t workers retrieve trash from Butuanon River

AN establishment along the Butuanon River in Mandaue City joined the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the observance of National Clean-up Month.

Last September 23, employees of Virginia Farms, which is located in Sitio Kalderohan, Barangay Maguikay, went to the river to retrieve trash like plastic.

The company’s meat-cutting plant has already complied with the city ordinance by treating wastewater before disposing it to the river.

Mithelini Ricote, the company’s human resource manager, said that since the meat-cutting plant was established last year, they already had their water treatment facility.

“We have a little farm at the plant’s vacant lot adjacent to the river and we use the treated wastewater to water the plants there,” she said.

A group of volunteers from EON Club Cebu headed by its former president Arvin Ricote and current vice president Gaudito Taneo also joined the cleanup. Another group of students and government workers were also cleaning the portion of the river along the Pacific Mall area and took plastic and other debris.

The Mandaue City government has passed a resolution declaring a Butuanon Day on November 2–4 with various activities aimed to create awareness, commitment and find resources to rehabilitate the river.

The first day of the three-day river rehabilitation project will cover the one-kilometer stretch of ten-kilometer Butuanon River from Pacific Mall to Cambogaong Bridge in Barangay Paknaan.