Mayor Rama orders fast setup of composting site for waste in SRP

CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama is eyeing an area of more than one hectare near Pond A in the South Road Properties (SRP) as a temporary site for composting  biodegradable waste.

“I will request Filinvest and SM, and other  stakeholders there and the DPWH for help on how to  operate this  so that composting is done successfully,” said Rama the other day.

He said this would be a temporary setup to remedy slow or absent collection of  garbage that his administration blames on the budget impasse in the City Council.

A P2.8 billion Supplemental Budget 1 (SB1) has been stalled for weeks by the majority block over questions about the legality of the mode of disposal of SRP lots that were sold in a public bidding.

The extra budget includes an  P87 million outlay for garbage tipping fees but more than P2 billion is meant for paying off Cebu City’s remaining loan from Japan for the 300-hectare reclamation project.

Rama  ordered his staff to start working on establishing a composting facility as soon as possible.

He gave the order to  the Department of Public Services (DPS), Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB), and the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CCENRO).

DPS chief Engr.  Rolando Ardosa said a  P101 million budget of the city for  garbage tipping fees and private haulers  was already depleted in July.

He said they are waiting for  approval of  SB-1 to pay bills of a  private hauler who’s contract ended in  July.

Ardosa said composting would help reduce the volume of trash to be hauled to a  private landfill in Consolacion town.

The composting site will serve urban areas around the SRP since the city has a separate one in barangay Kalunasan for the mountain barangays.

A chemical can be sprayed to prevent  foul odor in the site especially  since commercial developments are  ongoing in SRP.

City Hall plans to use the Takakura method invented by a Japanese that speeds up the process of composting with the use of  native agents that are cultured and fermented from locally available materials such as fresh fruits, vegetable peels, coconut wine, brown sugar, rice bran and rice husks.