Penalty eyed for trash collectors who fail to segregate garbage
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is eyeing the imposition of penalties on garbage collectors for not sorting wastes as required by law and as a strategy to encourage the public to segregate their wastes.
Secretary Ramon Paje said section 48 of the chapter on penal provisions of Republic Act 9003, also known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, explicitly prohibits the collection of non-segregated waste and transporting them. This includes mixing source-separated waste in any container used for solid waste collection or disposal.
“Filipinos are now aware of waste segregation and many are already practicing it in their households, but a lot of them are discouraged to sustain this practice because they see the truck collectors mixing up their garbage anyway,” Paje said.
He said that under R.A. 9003, violation of said provision is punishable with imprisonment from one day to three years, or fines from P300 to as much as P500,000. With such stiff penalties, the DENR chief believes that collectors will be encouraged to implement ecological waste management and dispose of their collected garbage properly.
“At the same time, this will also compel those who still do not segregate their own wastes to do so,” he said.
The aim of the penalty is to discipline collectors while at the same time compelling households to practice waste segregation, Paje said.
Paje clarified, however, that the implementation and enforcement of R.A. 9003 is a prime responsibility of the local government units (LGUs). Under the law, the barangay unit is responsible for segregating and collecting biodegradable, compostable and reusable wastes, while the city or municipal government will collect non-recyclable materials and other special wastes.
The DENR is eyeing on having the guidelines for penalizing collectors out and implemented early next year.
“As with many of our projects and programs, we will need the support of the LGUs for its successful implementation. The bottom line, however, is that the problem of waste reflects the kind of discipline Filipinos have. Let us show how determined we are to have a cleaner environment,” Paje said.*
