DUMPSITE CLOSED. The San Jose de Buenavista open dumpsite in Barangay Pantao was shut down in adherence to the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. Six other towns of Antique closed their dumpsites and established residual containment areas, the Antique Provincial Environment Management Unit said on Wednesday (May 26, 2021). (Photo courtesy of San Jose de Buenavista LGU)
SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique -Six municipalities of Antique have established residual containment areas (RCAs) following the closure of their open dumpsites in March this year.
Josephine Maguad, chief of the Antique Provincial Environment Management Unit (PEMU), in an interview on Wednesday, said the municipalities of Anini-y, Tobias Fornier, Barbaza, San Jose de Buenavista, Culasi, Tibiao, and Pandan voluntarily closed their open dumpsites before the March 31 deadline.
She said that except for this municipality, which received assistance from the Office of Antique Rep. Loren Legarda for the establishment of its sanitary landfill, the other municipalities have temporarily resorted to having RCAs.
“It would be good if the Antique provincial government could assist them in establishing their sanitary landfill,” she said.
Maguad added the Antique provincial board will conduct a consultative meeting anytime soon so they could come up with a plan for a clustered sanitary landfill.
In a separate interview, Pandan Mayor Plaridel Sanchez VI said their open dumpsite in Barangay Buhang was closed last February 15 and they established the RCA in the same barangay while working out to establish a sanitary landfill in Barangay Mag-aba.
“The RCA is just a temporary containment area where we put our residual wastes until such time we could establish a sanitary landfill,” he said.
The Antique Provincial Environment Management Unit (PEMU) is yet to inspect the proposed area if it is suitable for the sanitary landfill.
The dumpsites were shut down in adherence to Republic Act (RA) 9003, otherwise known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 which provides for an ecological solid waste management program, creating necessary institutional mechanisms and incentives, among others. (PNA)
