Binaliw landfill nears full reopening

Local

By MyTVCebu Desk

THE Binaliw sanitary landfill in Cebu City is nearing full reopening, with its operator expecting to complete the main disposal cell in about two weeks.

However, the city government must await a full lifting order from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources–Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) before municipal dumping can resume.

During an executive session on Tuesday, Aug. 11, Prime Waste Solutions Cebu General Manager Niño Abellana noted that the facility is currently accepting only 10 to 15 tons of waste daily from private haulers under a partial lifting order issued by DENR-EMB 7 on May 1, 2026.

"No LGUs," Abellana clarified when asked whether the facility had resumed accepting waste from local government units, including Cebu City.

The partial lifting order applies strictly to Binaliw’s interim cell, which holds a 20,000-metric-ton capacity and is currently reserved for private clients. Prime Waste is using this temporary space while completing the main cell, designed to handle up to 200,000 metric tons.

The facility had been under a total halt order following a fatal trash slide on January 8, 2026, which claimed 36 lives.

Abellana said the main cell was originally targeted for completion by July 31, but heavy rains in the latter part of July delayed the work.

Abellana estimated that the main cell would be finished in about two weeks.

Once completed and fully cleared by the DENR-EMB, the main cell is expected to allow Prime Waste to resume accepting waste from local government units, including Cebu City.

The main hurdle, however, remains the DENR-EMB’s full lifting order.

Abellana said Prime Waste has been coordinating closely with the environmental agency to comply with requirements needed for the full lifting of the order.

The company has already formed a Multipartite Monitoring Team, as required by the DENR-EMB, and has held two meetings with the group before presenting its work to the environmental agency.

Following an inspection of the facility last week, however, the DENR-EMB required Prime Waste to submit additional documents and compliance requirements.

Abellana said the company was set to submit the latest requirements on Tuesday.

“Hopefully, mao na ni last na sa ilang mga requirements, and we can be fully granted with the full lifting order,” he told the council.

Among the remedial measures cited by Abellana were the installation of gas vents, submission of certificates of treatment for leachate that had been hauled to an external treatment facility, submission of geotechnical survey analysis conducted by a third party, and installation of a rain gauge.

He said these requirements had already been complied with or were being submitted to the DENR-EMB.

Still, Abellana cautioned that the eventual full lifting order could come with conditions, including possible limits on the volume of waste that the facility may receive daily.

The discussion also clarified why Cebu City has not yet resumed sending its waste to Binaliw despite the landfill already accepting private waste.

Abellana said Prime Waste participated in the city government’s first bidding for the disposal of its waste in May but was disqualified during post-qualification because of documentation compliance issues.

He said the company had been unable to upload certain documents to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) because of a system maintenance issue, although it submitted hard copies.

The company did not participate in the succeeding bidding rounds because it decided to wait for the full lifting order from the DENR-EMB, Abellana said.

This account contradicted the impression that Prime Waste had simply refused to participate in the city’s procurement process or had declined to accept Cebu City’s waste because of opposition from some councilors.

Councilor Joel Garganera raised the issue during the executive session, noting that reports had circulated that the company was refusing to accept the city’s waste because of opposition from some council members.

“As far as I'm concerned, sir, wala jud na siya. Sa amoa lang jud, the company is bleeding,” he said, explaining that Prime Waste had incurred substantial expenses for the rehabilitation of the facility since January.

He said the company opened the interim cell to private haulers to help sustain its operations and keep its workers employed while awaiting the full lifting order.

“For us to be able to proceed without any doubts and questions on the capacity and our capability to receive,” Abellana said, the company was waiting for the full lifting order.

When Presiding Officer Sisinio Andales asked whether it was true that the city government had been barred from disposing of its waste at Binaliw, Abellana answered: “No, Mr. Chair, wala jud na siya'y ingon ana. That's not true.”

The delayed return to Binaliw has left Cebu City dealing with higher waste disposal costs and the logistical challenge of bringing its garbage to its current disposal site in Aloguinsan.

Councilor Franklyn Ong pressed Abellana for a definite timeline on when the city could expect to resume disposal at Binaliw, saying the council needs to align its budget, procurement and waste collection operations with the landfill’s reopening.

Ong also asked whether the company could accept waste collected by barangays if they directly paid Prime Waste, similar to its arrangement with private haulers.

Abellana said a barangay arrangement could be treated as a separate contract, but reiterated that the interim cell has limited capacity.

He also said Prime Waste was waiting for clearer guidance from the DENR-EMB on whether the company could internally transfer waste from the interim cell to the main cell as previously proposed.

The company had offered that arrangement during the earlier procurement process, Abellana said, but the required environmental clearance for such an arrangement was not provided.

The executive session also touched on the city government's outstanding obligations to Prime Waste.

Abellana acknowledged that the company continues to have receivables from the city, but said the current administration had already cleared a set of payments. What remains, he said, are obligations from the previous administration that the company hopes will be processed as part of the continuity of operations.

Abellana said he would raise the matter with Prime Waste’s principals but indicated that the company could discuss the issue if there were a clear commitment from the city that the outstanding obligations would undergo the required legal and administrative process.

Garganera, meanwhile, said the payment issue had been raised during a previous meeting involving the city, Prime Waste and the DENR-EMB, but was not presented as a precondition to the company accepting the city's waste.

He pointed to Prime Waste’s participation in the May bidding as an indication that the company had been willing to serve the city.

However, the timeline remains tied to the DENR-EMB.

Prime Waste said it was submitting the latest compliance requirements and hoped these would be the final requirements before the environmental agency issues the full lifting order.(TGP)