Baguio City in January. Photo: Therese Reyes
From trash to power
The burning problem
Trash in the streets of Baguio. Photo: Courtesy of Vicky Bautista
“I think many people who grew up in Baguio have learned to be environmentalists, in a sense, because we saw a city that was very conducive to loving nature,” she said.
Bautista talking about climate change. Photo: Courtesy of Vicky Bautista
Break Free From Plastic Philippines visited the proposed site for Davao City's WTE facility. Photo: Thea Kersti Tandog, courtesy of Break Free From Plastic Philippines
Controversial impact
Domingo said that WTEs will only be one part of a larger plan and believes it could even encourage people in Davao to segregate trash properly. Buyucan, meanwhile, said that having the facility in Baguio would solve two problems at the same time — mounting residual waste and the need for cleaner energy.But Ymata of Break Free From Plastic Philippines said the government does not need to look far to properly address the trash problem — just follow the law to the letter. He cited the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, which prioritizes resource conservation and recovery, waste minimization, and more participation from the private sector. It requires segregation and recycling at a village-level and excludes incineration as a solution.“Waste management does not require [a] high-tech solution,” Ymata said, adding that the government should just invest in helping local governments implement the solid waste management law.“Supporting LGUs (local government units)… will not require [the] spending of billions of pesos just to make them effective in managing the waste. And you won’t have dangers on public health and [the] environment.”Bautista acknowledged that reducing waste is difficult but crucial.“There's a lot that we have to give up to be able to have a zero-waste lifestyle. Many people are unwilling to give up much of the material goods that have come to define who they are. At the rate that humans are destroying this planet however, giving up material possessions may become not a matter of choice.”“The more that you consume and the more that you waste, the more that we are depleting the resources of our planet. Which means we are compromising the future generation.”
