The 37-member Quezon City council has passed an ordinance to implement stricter rules on restaurants dumping grease in sewage.
Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte said the council passed Ordinance 2691 penalizing food establishments illegally dumping used cooking oil and grease trap waste in the sewage.
She said grease contaminates waterways and clogs the drainage if not properly disposed of and treated.
“It is the policy of the Quezon City government to prevent or minimize the health hazards on ground and water pollution caused by the improper disposal, transport, storage, and reuse of used cooking oil and grease trap waste by food establishments,” she noted.
“The Used/Waste Cooking Oil and Grease Trap Waste Regulation Ordinance” provides new policies in the transport, storage, reuse, recycling, reprocessing or disposal of used cooking oil and grease by local restaurants and similar food establishments.
It strictly prohibits and penalizes non-segregation, illegal disposal and selling, and collection and transport by unauthorized entities of used cooking oil and grease trap waste.
Under the measure, all used cooking oil and grease trap waste shall only be transported, stored, reused, recycled, reprocessed, treated and disposed by waste transporters or treatment, storage and disposal facilities accredited by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and registered with the city’s Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department.