Scavengers were seen inside the Inayawan Landfill.
CDN FILE PHOTO
THE Inayawan Sanitary landfill in Cebu City is closed and can never be used again.
The decision of the Supreme Court affirming the closure of the landfill issued last March was recorded and entered in the permanent files of the high court last September 7.
Lawyer Joel Seno, counsel of Cebu City Councilor Joel Garganera said the recording of the case renders it immutable and settled.
“Cebu City has to continue to send reports on the rehabilitation. The DENR (Department of Environmental and Natural Resources) will monitor the compliance of the city,” said Seno.
If the city fails to comply with the requirement, administrative and criminal cases may be filed against city officials including MayorTomas Osmeña.
Garganera filed a Temporary Environmental Protection Order (TEPO) in September 2016 before the Court of Appeals (CA) citing various environmental and health violations over the years in the use of the landfill.
In October of the same year, the Court of Appeals issued a Writ of Kalikasan and ordered the city government to stop dumping garbage in the landfill and to begin its rehabilitation.
“Dili man unta ni maabot sa SC kon naminaw lang unta ang mayor to the council. (This case would not have reached the SC if the mayor had listened to the council),” said Garganera
Meanwhile, Cebu City Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CCENRO) Officer-in-charge, Nida Cabrera said that Cebu City continues to send reports on the rehabilitation of the landfill.
“We have ceased to dump garbage in the area since the Supreme Court has released the decision,” Cabrera said.
Cabrera also said that the rehabilitation continues using the waste to energy development outside of the landfill.
The waste to energy project of the city is situated on a four-hectare area outside the landfill that is not covered by the SC decision, which bans certain activities within 15 meters around the landfill.
“The plans are ongoing yet. We cannot determine when the rehabilitation will be complete,” Cabrera said.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
