The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)—through the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB)—has expanded its Integrated Information System (IIS) that records the amount of waste collected, hauled, and transported from localities to solid waste management or treatment facilities.
EMB Director William Cuñado said the IIS now includes a new feature that aims not only to continuously educate local government units (LGUs) on environmental management, but also to monitor their compliance in the observance of minimum standards and requirements for the collection of solid waste.
“LGUs are partners of the national government in enforcing environmental laws and regulations. We need to work closely with them to achieve significant and meaningful results in environmental protection and management,” Cuñado said in a statement.
Under Section 24 of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, environmental monitoring officers (EnMOs) are tasked to monitor the recommendations given by the EMB to LGUs, such as providing trucks for collection of recyclables like glass, metals, plastics and waste paper to be transported to the materials recovery facilities, recycling facilities, or contracted junk shops; collection of compostable or biodegradable wastes to be transported to composting facilities; and collection of household infectious wastes or COVID-19 related wastes.
The EnMOs are also tasked with ensuring that unsegregated or mixed solid waste at the source will not be collected.
Meanwhile, the LGUs will have to submit their daily and monthly reports through the EMB IIS.
The EnMOs will consolidate these reports for the updating of solid waste management regional data on the quantity of waste collected, hauled, and transported to the waste facilities.
Cuñado said some residents practice waste segregation at source in their homes, but the segregated wastes are mixed by the waste collection crew in the dump trucks in violation of Section 24 of RA 9003.
“Hence, the efforts of the residents and establishments in practicing proper waste segregation at source are disregarded,” he said.
“Through the monthly consolidation of manifest forms the LGUs submitted to IIS, we can respond immediately and monitor the commitments of the LGUs with the primary emphasis on their biodegradables, recyclables, residuals, household hazardous wastes, and especially the management of the COVID-19 related wastes,” Cuñado added.
