Baguio hit for dumping trash in Benguet town

By Dexter A. See

ITOGON, Benguet — Thousands of villagers and local officials here denounced the unabated dumping of tons of wastes coming from nearby Baguio City in their cliffs which they said, are posing serious threat to their health and the environment.

The complaint signed by villagers in Barangays Tuding, Ucab, Antamok, Luacan, among others, was forwarded to the city local government stating their observations that the wastes being secretly dumped in the cliffs came from business establishments in Baguio.

According to their complaint, the unabated dumping of waste had been happening for several weeks, thus, they assigned law enforcers and civilian volunteers to guard their cliffs to prevent unscrupulous garbage haulers and Baguio residents from dumping their waste in their areas which could pollute the different river systems and pollute the air.

While claiming the municipal government is interested in assisting the city government in looking for a site for a sanitary landfill in their town, local officials expressed disappointment over lack of sincerity of Baguio officials in talking with them since the city government frequently sent representatives who did not know what they were talking about, thus, they are confused on whom to negotiate with.

Because of this, the Benguet local government has virtually closed its doors on hosting the city’s sanitary landfill and will negotiate with neighboring towns to put up their own clustered landfill.

Earlier, Baguio was eying the abandoned open pit site of the Benguet Corp. in Antamok as possible site for its sanitary landfill after it was offered by the management of the mining company.