After flood control, garbage control?
It’s no secret that waste management in several cities in Laguna province has been a source of contention and controversy in past years.
As the first and second districts of Laguna transformed from agricultural estates to industrial, residential and commercial hubs, the problem of waste management has caused headaches for local government units here in the province.
Last week’s habagat rains once again forced the issue into the limelight – and not just because of the reports of a literal “dagat ng basura” clogging waterways in Metro Manila.
And it now appears that in all the (justified and necessary) public outrage against the billions in pesos in flood-control funds that were funneled into the pockets of corrupt government officials – some of whom, we must point out, have yet to face the consequences of their greed – we had forgotten another pivotal issue that also affects our daily lives: proper waste management.
In San Pedro City, for instance, tons of garbage and debris once again filled up the Tunasan River at the boundary of this city and the National Capital Region after days of endless rains.
The piles of debris clogged up the river under the National Highway, necessitating a major cleanup.
The fact that the Tunasan River had earlier been dredged by San Miguel Corporation (SMC) as part of the latter’s “Better Rivers PH” only served to add insult to injury.
While San Pedro City was largely spared the flooding that once again inundated parts of Metro Manila last week, the issue of garbage has once again had national and local governments scrambling for solutions – the usual knee-jerk, after the fact response to disasters.
If there is one lesson that can be learned from last week’s floods, it’s that flood control and proper waste management go hand in hand.
Here’s another hard question to our leaders: why are we letting our waste-management system go to the pits (literally), potentially endangering the lives of our residents who already face the consequences of massive corruption in flood control?
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