Antique: The sanitary landfill of this capital town, which serves 28 villages, is supposed to have a lifespan of at least 10 years since it started operations in 2021. It is nearly filled to the brim, according to the municipal council.

According to Philippines News Agency, Councilor Cris John Banusing, chair of the Committee on Environment, said in an interview Tuesday that the local government cannot afford to expand its only sanitary landfill located in Barangay Pantao. “We need to have at least PHP30 million to construct another cell of the sanitary landfill and we do not have an appropriation for it,” Banusing said.

He said the situation of the sanitary landfill is already at the level of danger. The municipality generates 16 tons of solid waste a day, with three tons considered residual or solid waste materials that are non-compostable and non-recyclable. “There had been a failure in waste segregation at the source, so the sanitary landfill was easily filled up,” Banusing said.

He added that the council has been orienting village officials and residents to segregate their waste, but there is a failure in the implementation. They have contacted a junk shop in Iloilo City that would buy the single-use residual plastics, such as gift wrappers and straws. Banusing emphasized, “If only the residents strictly practice waste segregation, then there would be almost nothing more to dispose of at the sanitary landfill.”