ENS 46 –ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING

2nd Semester SY 2019-2020

College of Forestry and Environmental Science
Environmental Science Department

Name: Marinela Gem C. Daumar Date: February 25, 2020

SOLID WASTE IN CEBU CITY

I. Introduction

Cebu City is located on the central part of Cebu Province, the island in
Central Visayas, Southern Philippines. It is bounded by Mandaue City in the
North and Talisay City in the South. In the east is the Mactan Channel and in
the west are the Municipality of Balamban and the City of Toledo (figure 1). It
has a total land area of 326.10 square kilometres (sq.km) or 29,124.78
hectares (ha). It is composed of eighty barangays, forty-six in the North
District and thirty-four in the South District. Of these barangays, fifty are
classified as urban and thirty as rural barangays (Philippines Statistics
Authority, 2015).

Figure1. Cebu City map location. Retrieved from google map

Its population as determined by the Philippines Statistics Authority

2015 Census was 922,611 but it rises to over a million during daytime due to
the influx of the working force in the city. This represented 12.47% of the total
population of the Central Visayas region. Based on these figures, the
population density is computed at 2,929 inhabitants per square kilometer or
7,586 inhabitants per square mile. It was estimated that the population of
Cebu City will be doubled in next 30 years.

Waste situation of Cebu City

According to the Republic Act 9003, Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)

refers to wastes produced from activities within local government units which
include a combination of domestic, commercial, institutional and industrial
wastes and street sweepings. The city generates large amounts of organic
waste (approximately 67% of its waste stream). This high organic waste
contributes to increased leachate and methane emissions. Although 58 of the
80 barangays have composting plants and material recovery facilities, most of
these facilities do not function effectively primarily because the waste is not
separated at the source. Further, the city reports that it has a nearly 100%
waste collection rate, yet it is common to see waste piling up on streets and in
waterways, suggesting an imperfect waste collection structure. As shown in
Figure 2, most of the MSW in Cebu City has been found to originate from
households, accounting for about 54%; comparatively, commercial sources,
such as businesses, public and private markets contribute 25%, while
institutional sources such as government offices, educational and medical
establishments account for about 21%. Figure 3 indicates that Cebu City
produces mostly organic wastes like leftover food and rotten fruits and
vegetables, which is estimated about 67% of the total waste generation in the
city; 21% is recyclable (i.e., paper, plastic, metal, glass) and the rest is
hazardous and residuals.

Figure 2. Waste composition and Figure 3. MSW composition in Cebu City,

assessment of Cebu City. Retrieved 2010. Retrieved
fromhttps://www.waste.ccacoalition.org fromhttps://www.waste.ccacoalition.org
II. What are the contributors/ factors that cause such problem?
a) Geographic location
- Because of its geographic location and its accessibility by air, land and
sea transportation, Cebu City has become the tourism gateway to Central
and Southern Philippines. The Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA)
located in the neighboring city of Lapu Lapu has direct flights to Hong
Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, China, South Korea and
among others. The proximity of Cebu city to its neighboring islands,
beaches, hotels and resorts, dive spots and heritage sites fueled the city's
tourism industry and increased domestic and foreign tourist arrivals
resulting production of waste in the city (Villarete 2011).
b) Type of activities practiced by the people
-. Cebu City also has its share of heritage sites and structures like the
Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino, the Fort San Pedro and the Magellan's
Cross, located across the city hall building, which are often visited by
tourists. Its annual Sinulog celebration held every third Sunday of January
and in honor of the Sto. Niño has also become a crowd drawer resulting
production of waste in the city (Premakumara 2012).
c) Economic growth
- Cebu City has a thriving commercial seaport, and a majority of the city’s
labor force (73%) is employed in trade and other related services such as
banking, real estate, insurance, and community and personal services.
About 19% of the population is employed in industry, and 8% in agriculture
and related services. Due to its strategic location and easy access by air
and sea transport, information and communication technology (ICT) and
tourism are propellant sectors leading the city’s economic growth.
Economic expansions in the city have led to a steady rise in consumption
resulting production of waste (Villarete 2011).
d) Increase in population density
- The booming of urban population has led to increase in waste
generation. In 1982, for example, the city generated roughly 212 tons/day
of municipal waste, increasing to 420 tons/day by 2010. Although there is
no accurate data available on waste generation in the city, In the year
2016 they estimates that Cebu produces about 630 tons of MSW per day,
 based on national calculations, which consider average per capita waste
generation to comprise 500 grams/person in provincial capitals (Dickella
et.al 2017)
e) Rapid increase in the volume of municipal and industrial solid
wastes, Low collection rate of waste
-According to the report on Asia Environmental Cooperation Network
Project under JICA Partnership Program (2013). The city’s waste
collection system operates 24 hours in three shifts. Waste is collected
mainly by city-owned garbage trucks complemented by Barangay owned
garbage trucks. Currently, the city government has 29 units of garbage
compactor and open dump trucks consisting 8 brands from 3 different
countries (Japan, Korea and Sweden). However, it was identified that only
18 trucks are in the proper condition for operation, while the rest of the
others are out of work. The city government uses three types of collection
methods to ensure efficient waste collection in the city. The bell collection
method is used in areas that are inaccessible to trucks. The kerbside
collection method is normally used in areas where commercial
establishments are located. The communal container collection method
issued for schools, public markets and public terminals. However, it was
evident that there is heaps of uncollected garbage in the roadsides.
f) Behaviors of the people towards waste segregation and disposal
-It was common that many people do not seem aware of the potential
environmental problems caused by disposal of solid waste. Waste is often
seen as a problem because of practical reasons. They don’t much concern
about what happens to the garbage once it is removed from their
premises, which is the evidence of the NIMBY (Not In My Backyard)
phenomenon (Premakumara 2012).
-Some households are involved in selling recyclable materials to house-to-
house collectors. The waste materials that can still be sold are not really
seen as garbage. These recyclable materials are seen as something that
still has some value. However, it is usually thrown away when not
collected (Premakumara 2012).
-Very few have an idea about composting and practice in gardening. Many
people argued that the main problem for doing composting and backyard
 gardening is lack of enough space within their households (Premakumara
2012).
-Regular waste collection by Barangays is seen by many households as a
solution to the garbage problem. However, some people argued about the
possible role of households, which was limited to giving the garbage to
collection trucks, or put into a central garbage bin no too far from their
houses, making ease the task of waste collection. Almost all households
don’t want to pay extra fees for waste collection service and argued that it
is a responsibility of Barangay (Premakumara 2012).
g) Landfill area and Inadequate operation and maintenance structure for
machinery and equipment, low utilization rate
-Occupying a total land area of 326.10 km2, Cebu City is one of the largest
growth centers in the Philippines. However, Cebu city doesn’t have
enough available land to support their growing number of solid waste
generated every day (Ancog et.al 2012).
-The collected MSW from various parts of the city is transported to
Inayawan, the only landfill site in the city. At the site, approximately 40% of
MSW is loaded again into bigger trucks and transported to Consolacion
landfill, which is located in a neighbouring city, 30 km away from Cebu
City. The city pays 700 PhP per tonne as a tipping free. The rest of the
60% is disposed of in the Inayawan landfill site, constructed in 1998 under
the financial assistance of the Japan International Cooperation Agency
(JICA) as a sanitary landfill site. Due to the lack of sufficient expertise in
maintaining the Inayawan landfill equipment and facilities, insufficient
financial resources for operation and maintenance coupled with the
increasing volume of waste being disposed in the landfill daily, the landfill
then operates as an open dump without any measures to control leachate,
dust, odor, landfill gas or vermin resulting health and environmental
problems. Inayawan reached its maximum capacity in 2010. Finding a
suitable relocation site has proven to be a difficult undertaking due to a
lack of available land; a number of technical and political issues also
delayed the landfill’s ultimate closure. In December 2016 Inayawan landfill
has finally shutdown, the city government has work for its proper closure
and rehabilitation plan.
 Cebu city
Geographic Location

“Strategic location and easy

access by air and sea transport, “Tourism gateway”
information and communication
technology (ICT) and tourism”

Type of activities practiced

by the people

Economic growth Increase in population density

Behaviors of the people

towards waste segregation
and disposal

SOLID
WASTE

Rapid increase in the volume of

municipal and industrial solid
wastes

Low collection rate of waste

Landfill area and Inadequate

operation and maintenance
structure for machinery and
equipment, low utilization rate
III. Construct a schematic diagram to show these factors.

1. Population explosion, rapid

urbanization, expansion of
squatter settlements

2. Insufficient public
education and community
participation
External
Problems

1. Rapid increase in the

volume of municipal and
industrial solid wastes, low
collection rate of waste
simultaneously
external and 2. Lack of interest in solid
internal
problems waste problems

4. Lack of coordination
among sectors, organizations
and municipalities

5. Lack of a clear policy on

waste pickers
Internal
problems
6. Lack of capacity in public
cleansing departments,
inadequate development
programs for human
resources

7. Friction between
management and labor
within public cleansing
departments or services
1. Inadequate operation and
maintenance structure for 8. Inadequate legal systems,
machinery and equipment, low insufficient law enforcement
utilization rate
9. Weak financial base
IV. Why do these problems persist?

Solid waste is a universal issue that matters to every single person in

the world. And with over 90% of waste openly dumped or burned in low-
income countries, it is the poor and most vulnerable who are
disproportionately affected. While this is a topic that people are aware of,
waste generation is increasing at an alarming rate. Countries are rapidly
developing without adequate systems in place to manage the changing waste
composition of citizens. Cities, home to over half of humanity and generating
more than 80% of the world’s GDP, are at the forefront of tackling the global
waste challenge.
According to the World Bank’s What a Waste 2.0 report, the world
generates 2.01 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, with at least
33% of that not managed in an environmentally safe manner. An update to a
previous edition, the 2018 report projects that rapid urbanization, population
growth, and economic development will push global waste to increase by 70%
over the next 30 years – to a staggering 3.40 billion tonnes of waste
generated annually. Waste generation is expected to rise with economic
development and population growth

V. How are you going to understand the problem? What parameters should you
consider to understand the problem?
To better apprehend the problem, the key parameters to consider is as
follows:
 Population density
 Area size
 Social aspects influencing policies
 Waste generation
 Waste collection
 Waste prevention
Since not all parameters are equally relevant for the required level of detail for
investigating certain parameters varies, selected key parameters were allocated
differently in a last step.

VI. What are the potential sources of your data and how are you going to collect
them?
VII. References

Ancog, Rico & Archival, Nestor & Rebancos, Carmelita. (2012). Institutional
Arrangements for Solid Waste Management in Cebu City, Philippines.
Journal of Environmental Science and Management. 15. 74-82.

Congress of the Philippines. 2001. Republic Act No. 9003 Ecological solid
waste management act of 2000. Manila.

Dickella, Premakumara & Hengesbaugh, Matthew & Onogawa, Kazunobu &

Cabrera, Nida. (2017). PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION OF
INTEGRATED SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES AT
LOCAL LEVEL: THE CASE OF CEBU CITY.

Philippines Statistics Authority, https://psa.gov.ph/content/population-region-

vii-central-visayas-based-2015-census-population

Premakumara, D.G.J., 2012. Establishment of the Community-Based Solid

Waste Management System in Metro Cebu, the Philippines. In: KITA &
IGES (Eds.), The Report for the Establishment of the Waste
Management System in Metro Cebu, Philippines, Kitakyushu, Japan.

Villarete, N.P.C, Solid Waste Management in Cebu City,

http://www.kitakyushu.iges.or.jp/docs/mtgs/.../3%20Cebu%20(Paper).p
df, referred on 21/05/2011

City of Kitakyushu, Report on Asia Environmnetal Cooperation Network

Project under JICA Partnership Programme, Dispatch of Expert, 2003