The fate of Cebu City’s Binaliw sanitary landfill remains tied to unanswered questions surrounding the landslide that killed 36 people in January, with a city councilor demanding the release of the official investigation findings before the facility fully resumes operations.
Cebu City Councilor Joel Garganera made the call during an executive session of the City Council on Tuesday, Aug. 11, stressing that safety should remain the priority following the Jan. 8 tragedy.
“I just want to make myself clear here. I’m very vocal about this, about safety. Because I really don’t want what happened last January 8 to happen again,” said Garganera, chairperson of the council’s Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, Energy, and Other Utilities.
Garganera urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) central office in Manila to release the findings of its investigation into the landslide.
“I just want to know what is now the update about the investigation that is being conducted by the DENR Manila head office. Because in order to proceed, we need to have the answers as to what really transpired on January 8,” he said.
He said the City Council would continue to prioritize the safety of the landfill and communities around the facility.
During the session, Primewaste General Manager Niño Abellana clarified that the company’s failure to participate in a recent city garbage bidding was due to incomplete document submissions to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS), rather than a refusal to accept Cebu City’s waste.
Garganera said the clarification countered claims that the City Council, particularly members of the opposition, were responsible for delays in waste disposal.
“I just want to dispel that insinuation made by the Mayor, that it is in the council, especially in the opposition, [that] is the reason why they won’t accept garbage. Which, as heard from the General Manager, was never the case,” Garganera said.
He also urged the executive branch to avoid what he called “low-sowing intrigues” amid the city’s waste management problems.
Abellana said the Binaliw facility could fully reopen to receive Cebu City’s waste in about two weeks, or by late August, subject to the completion of its main disposal cell and the issuance of a full lifting order by the DENR Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB).
The issue comes as the city faces mounting costs after exhausting its contracted waste disposal allocation in Aloguinsan and temporarily using the South Road Properties (SRP) as a garbage holding area.
Vice Mayor Tomas Osmeña said hauling about 600 tons of waste daily to Aloguinsan costs the city around P1.8 million a day, which he described as unsustainable for city finances.
Osmeña has sought a 30- to 60-day window to put alternative long-term waste management measures in place.
Garganera, however, cautioned against relying on temporary solutions and said any decision to resume operations at Binaliw or use alternative disposal sites should be based on complete safety assessments, data and transparency.
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