Kalangitan sanitary landfill in Tarlac still operating
Art Dumlao — January 9, 2025
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BAGUIO CITY (January 7, 2024) – The Kalangitan Sanitary Landfill in Capas, Tarlac by the Metro Clark Waste Management Corp. (MCWMC) is still operating despite the 60-day Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) issued by the Court of Appeals, according to the state-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA)
The TRO essentially allows the BCDA, to recover the state-owned property and “there being no effective injunction that will hinder it to do so”.
BCDA banters that there is no valid Authority to Operate (ATO) and business permit issued over the Kalangitan Sanitary Landfill.
BCDA also claimed that recent documentation point that MCWMC has illegally set up a station along the road outside the landfill, encroaching on BCDA land outside of the facility. Aside from the barriers set up by MCWMC preventing recovery efforts, security on the ground reported a foul smell emanating from the Kalangitan Sanitary Landfill, raising health and safety concerns for the neighboring communities, it added.
Representatives from the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), as well as sanitation inspectors and public health officials from the Provincial Government of Tarlac and Municipal Government of Capas were immediately contacted by BCDA to prevent further harm to neighboring communities and to authorities on the ground during recovery efforts.
BCDA is urging MCWMC “to uphold the rule of law, to stop trespassing on government property, and to cease its illegal operations,” while renewing its call for local government units (LGUs), businesses, and other clients to stop using the sanitary landfill.
BCDA also warned against continued use of the facility which, according to the state-run agency, “constitutes a violation of existing environmental laws such as Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.”
Though BCDA assured that it is coordinating the DENR-Environmental Management Bureau, the concerned LGUs, and other stakeholders to ensure non-disruption of waste management services in affected areas.
