BAGUIO CITY — The state-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) belied on Tuesday that there is a looming garbage crisis with the imminent closure of the Tarlac sanitary landfill.
BCDA Public Affairs Department Chief Zyrelle del Prado said the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) Region III already came out with a report that there are two existing facilities in Pampanga that may be utilized upon the Tarlac sanitary landfill’s closure.
The Metro Clark Waste Management Corp.’s (MCWMC) 25-year contract for the Kalangitan sanitary landfill facilities in Capas, Tarlac is due to expire worrying various local government units (LGUs), including Baguio City, bringing their solid waste in the facility.
Pursuant to the legal opinion of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC), BCDA’s statutory counsel, extending the contract between Clark Development Corporation (CDC) and MCWMC beyond October 2024 would be against the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Law, the framework used in bidding and awarding the contract for the project, the BCDA stressed in a statement sent to journalists Tuesday.
BCDA maintained that a sanitary landfill is no longer consistent with the government’s vision of transforming New Clark City into a premier investment and tourism destination.
It vowed to assist LGUs, government agencies, and locators to explore alternative solutions for their waste disposal requirements to ensure non-disruption of solid waste management services. — Artemio A. Dumlao
