‘No projects without landfill plan’

Any improvements or projects to be done at the Inayawan landfill should wait until a comprehensive closure plan is finalized for the site, opposition Barug Team Rama councilors said yesterday.

In yesterday’s City Council session, the opposition councilors said all rehabilitation programs should be aligned with the closure plan to avoid wasting government funds.

“If you want efficiency in expenditures, we have to wait for the plan. We are not experts on this. That’s why it’s a sound suggestion to wait for the plan first,” said Councilor Eduardo Rama Jr.

The City Council held the session to discuss some proposed projects for the landfill rehabilitation.

These include construction of a perimeter fence for the landfill worth P35.2 million, recovery of the landfill’s service area for P10 million and construction of a South Road Properties (SRP)-Inayawan landfill causeway at P3.4 million, among others.

Nida Cabrera, chief of the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CCENRO), said the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) cited the lack of a perimeter fence as one of the violations for the landfill operation.

But Councilor Joel Garganera, who used to head the Council’s committee on environment, said the final closure plan may require a different type of fence from the hollow blocks type of fence proposed by the administration.

The Inayawan landfill was ordered closed by the Court of Appeals last December after Councilor Garganera filed a petition for Writ of Kalikasan compelling the city to close the landfill following complaints from residents and businesses.

Part of the court order required a closure plan and rehabilitation of the landfill.