Pilipinas A Look at the Garbage Disposal Facility in Metro Manila: The Case of Payatas by Michael Cocjin and Pierre Joven Filipino fisherman, Palawan 1998 About the Philippines Official name: Republika ng Pilipinas (Republic of the Philippines) Official languages: Filipino (Tagalog) and English Capital: Manila (Metropolitan Manila) Form of Government: Presidential, unitary form Land area: 115,739 sq. m. (299,764 sq. km.) Number of islands: 7,107 Population: 96,061,680 Climate: March to Mayhot and dry June to October rainy November to Februarycool Average temperature: 25°C to 90°F / 32°C Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Buddhist Largest Catholic country in Asia 12th most populous country 47th largest economy in the world (2008 GDP of over US$ 168.6 billion ) A newly industrialized country,listed in the roster of the "Next Eleven" economies. 1 • National capital of the Philippines About • Population: 11,553,427 (2007 Census) • Land Area: 636 square kilometers Metropolitan • Composition: 16 cities + 1 municipality • Financial, commercial, industrial and educational center of the Philippines Manila • Accounts for 32% of the Philippines' GDP BIG city LARGE amount of waste generated! In 2009, approximately 7,200 tons of garbage per day The collected wastes in MM are dumped in one of the following dumpsites: Rodriguez, Payatas, Navotas, Solid Waste Disposal San Pedro, Las Piñas and Lingunan Problem in Metro Manila Of the 7200 tons per day of waste generated by the Metro, only 79% is collected 2 • Oldest facility being used as a dump site Payatas • Located in the northeastern part of Quezon City, and is 400 m southeast of La Mesa Reservoir (main water source of dumpsite General Information Metro Manila) • Composed of two dumping sites: old dumpsite (12 hectares) and newer dumpsite (10 hectares) • • Receives wastes from Quezon City and Pasig City • Total volume of two dumpsites: 2.46 x 10^6 m^3 (based from topographic survey, 2002) Payatas dumpsite Soil Characteristics Dumpsite lies on soil which is composed of residual of tuffaceous soil cover derived from the in-situ weathering of the bedrock. This type of soil is generally thin, medium to coarse grained with a high void ratio and is very permeable 3 Daily waste intake of 7,000 metric cube with an average mass of 1,402 tons per day Average number of truck trips in a day is 500 Composition Payatas (% wet wt.) Pasig City Quezon City dumpsite Paper 12.4 14.1 Glass 5 3.4 Waste composition Metals 11.6 3.6 Plastic 20.9 21.4 Kitchen/Food waste 23.2 40 Other organic 18.9 14.8 Other inorganic 6.7 2.4 Hazardous/Special 1.4 0.4 Date Event / Activity 1973 Dumping operations started in Payatas 1988 Closure of Smokey Mountain; almost 6,500 tons of waste moved to Payatas, scavengers also migrated to Payatas Chronology of September Closure order was issued, but the site events in Payatas 1998 was reopened later October 29, Waste slide occurred, four shanties dumpsite 1998 were buried but no one was killed July 20, • Waste slide occurred after ten days 2000 of continuous heavy rainfall (75cm depth) • 278 dead, buried in avalanche (13,000 – 16,000 cu. m) • Management turned over to Payatas Operations Group • Slope improvement from 1.5:1 to 2.5:1 2007 Methane gas recovery for power generation 4 • Socio-economic impacts (esp. post-closure) • Landfill stability • Groundwater contamination • Surface water contamination of Marikina river Problems associated with Payatas Dumpsite Socio-economic Impacts Public health of residents proximate to Payatas estate are affected due to foul smell. About 2,000 households settled around the dumpsite. Many of them work in waste businesses such as at junk stores or as waste pickers (scavengers). Closure of Payatas dumping site will displace waste pickers and their families. (No more livelihood) 5 Low High Landfill density rainfall of waste stability • On 10 July 2000 around 5 a.m., a slope of the landfill failed and 1.2 million m3 Unrestricted of waste slid down. ‘Garvalanche' water buried the scavengers' cottages. An percolation area of around 30,000 m2 in front of the toe of the slope was completely covered by waste and debris Decreased shear strength mobilized pore and flow pressure L ANDS LIDE! La Mesa Dam: 400 m away from Payatas dumpsite Studies reveal that groundwater directly under Payatas estate is contaminated. Total coliform (MPN>0), TDS (>1000 mg [L.sup.-1]), TSS (>50 mg [L.sup.-1]) and pH (<6.5) are over the quality standards of DENR and DOH. The significant differences at the levels of the pollutants (TDS, sulfate, conductivity and salinity) strongly indicate the existence of groundwater pollution under Payatas estate. DENR – Department of Environment and Natural Resources DOH – Department of Health 6 Payatas Dumpsite: A La Mesa Watershed is 2700 hectares, 700 hectares of which is the reservoir and 2000 hectares of which is the surrounding forest. threat to the main This forest is the last remaining of its size in Metro Manila and serves as its carbon dioxide source of water utility sink apart from being its lone source of fresh water. of Metro Manila? Picture: La Mesa Dam Eco Park Not now, maybe later? Contamination of La Mesa Reservoir from Payatas? Based on simulation study by University of the Philippines National Hydraulic Research Center (UP NHRC) for the Metropolitan Waterworks Sewerage System (MWSS), there is very small chance or opportunity for the Payatas dumpsite contaminants to reach the La Mesa Reservoir. The contaminant may travel downstream toward the direction of Marikina river. 7 Surface water contamination of • Monitoring data taken in May 2008 shows slight Marikina River decrease in dissolve oxygen (DO) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) in the downstream of Marikina river (mix of effluent creeks from Payatas) • Dissolve oxygen supports diverse aquatic life Recommendations 1. Monitoring program should be put in place to ensure that environmental quality, public health and safety are protected and corresponding mitigation measures are implemented should a negative situation arise. 8 Recommendations 2. Alternative livelihoods should be provided to displaced scavengers. People can be hired to do the sorting inside a Materials Recovery Facility 3. Construction of leachate treatment system 4. Landfill area should be kept open and free of heavy loads. Closed area can be used as park, golf course and parking lot. • Kusakabe, et. al. Sustainable Civil Engineering. 2009. The University of References the Philippines Press. Pp. 167-179. • http://www.waste-management- world.com/articles/print_screen.cfm?ARTICLE_ID=273039 • http://www.articlearchives.com/environment-natural-resources/pollution- monitoring/1883547-1.html • http://www.cv.titech.ac.jp/~jsps/Payatas%20pdf/4_2guillermo_tabios%20p df.pdf Picture: Makati City Central Business District 9 Thank you for your attention! Maraming salamat, po… Boracay Island, Philippines 10.