Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama says he has yet to receive the resolution about the joint venture agreement of a waste to energy facility in Cebu City and he assures that he will read it and study it before deciding on signing or not signing it. | screengrab from Mayor’s press conference video
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Various environmental groups in the country are urging Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama not to approve the Waste to Energy (WTE) Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) with New Sky Energy Philippines.
The City Council recently passed the JVA in a divided house on March 9, 2022, which would allow Rama to sign the deal that should establish a 6-hectare WTE facility in the city and which should be operational for the next 40 years.
It must be noted that New Sky is given 365 days to find a suitable and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) approved plot of land to build the WTE.
This means that even if the JVA is passed, the actual construction may yet to start in more than a year after.
EcoWaste Coalition which is comprised of No Burn Pilipinas, Break Free from Plastic Philippines, and other environmental groups have issued a statement saying that WTE will be detrimental to Cebu’s environment.
They said that the project will tie the city to a long-term garbage contract involving a highly problematic solid waste management system.
“The hasty approval by the Cebu City Council of the incinerator proposal is very unfortunate. There is clear scientific evidence that WTE facilities produce and release harmful toxins that cause serious respiratory diseases. Moreover, the city will be locked into a highly onerous contract for many years. These are serious concerns and the City Government should reconsider its approval of this dangerous agreement,” said Lawyer Lievj Alimangohan of EcoWaste Coalition.
In the proposal submitted by New Sky Energy to the Cebu City Council, the incinerator company will put a waste-to-energy garbage incinerator facility in the city.
Meanwhile, the City will provide a 40-year secured franchise to the company and a minimum guaranteed volume of 800 tons of garbage per day at an expensive rate of Php 1,300 pesos per ton.
“We urge Mayor Rama to reconsider this incinerator proposal. The City should not jump at this quick-fix solution that in the end will be a burden to the city and will threaten the people’s health, welfare, and sources of livelihood. There are already more ecological and people-centered solutions on solid waste management and we hope these should be considered first and foremost by our local leaders,” added Alimangohan of Ecowaste Coalition.
Rama, for his part, said he had yet to receive the resolution, and he would study the JVA before signing it. After all, he can choose not to push through if he finds deficits in the contract.
“I have not yet received the resolution. Just like any JVA, I don’t want to be affixing my signature without reading. I will be reading all of it, but mind you WTE is part of what we wish to pursue,” said Rama.
The mayor is still approving of the WTE concept, but he wants to hear the concerns of the stakeholders first. This is why he is holding an Environment Summit this April to address the city’s Solid Waste Management Plan.
He does not want to make promises yet, but Rama assured the public that he would study the JVA before he would give it a go.
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