NEDA CALLS FOR GREATER LGU COMPLIANCE ON SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT

MANILA—The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) is calling for greater participation of Metro Manila local government units (LGUs) in improving waste disposal through the formulation of their respective Solid Waste Management (SWM) Plans.

”Low compliance rate among LGUs in creating their own SWM Plans is a major issue that hampers the establishment of a suitable and sustainable SWM system in Metro Manila,” Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said.

He cited the latest Socioeconomic Report (SER): 2010-2012 recently released by NEDA, which states that only nine (52.94%) out of the 16 cities and one municipality that comprise Metro Manila have submitted complete SWM plans.  At the national level, only 414 LGUs have completed their SWM Plans as of May 2012.  This is only 25.71 percent of the 1,610 cities and municipalities nationwide.

Balisacan, who is also NEDA Director-General, said high upfront capital costs limit financial capacity of LGUs to invest in SWM projects, such as development of waste disposal site and establishment of materials recycling facilities, among others.

“The inadequate financial capacity of LGUs and the perceived low willingness of LGU constituents to pay for SWM services are main reasons we scored low in achieving the objectives of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act (ESWMA) and Philippine Development Plan (PDP): 2011-2016,” Balisacan said.

The PDP 2011-2016 envisions to achieve by 2016, with 2010 data as baseline, a 50-percent increase in solid waste diversion rate from waste disposal facilities through reusing, recycling and composting, and other resource recovery activities.

The diversion rate measures how much solid waste is redirected from disposal to recycling.

In 2011, the SER said the diversion rate of solid waste in Metro Manila was only at 34 percent or approximately 2,850 tons per day out of 8,400 tons per day total waste generated.  This is a slight improvement from the 33-percent baseline as of 2010.

The lack of SWM plans of LGUs has made them more dependent on facilities from the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) in managing their increasing volume of solid wastes from residents and business establishments in their respective communities, outstripping the imposed volume limit of waste disposal at MMDA landfills.

The SER is an assessment of the first two years of the Aquino administration in relation to the targets and strategies set in the PDP 2011-2016.

M.R. No. 2013-030                                                                                

10 March 2013

This can be viewed at http://www.neda.gov.ph/econreports_dbs/SER/SER2010-2012new.pdf.