Palace: BOC to send back Hong Kong trash

The Philippines will send back to Hong Kong the trash shipped to Misamis Oriental early this year, Malacañang said Friday.

The mixed plastic waste declared as "assorted electronic accessories" is the latest in a series of discoveries by officials of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) of shipments coming from Australia, Canada and South Korea.

The shipment from Hong Kong arrived at the Mindanao Container Terminal in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental last January and has since been abandoned.

"We commend the Bureau of Customs for the early detection of the entry of mixed plastic wastes, which have been declared 'assorted electronic accessories,' from Hong Kong into Misamis Oriental, Philippines. We understand that the BOC would export this illegal shipment back to its port of origin," presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.

"We call on concerned agencies of the government to continue exercising vigilance and hinder the entry of such shipments of garbage into our territorial jurisdiction at the first instance."

Panelo reiterated the government's policy that the Philippines "will not allow its territory to be treated as a dumping ground for trash by any foreign country or entity."

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday ordered the return of Canada's trash a week after it missed the deadline in taking back the garbage exported to the Philippines in 2013 and 2014.

The Canadian government said it will begin preparation for the shipping in the coming days and the removal of trash will be completed by the end of June. The Palace rejected this arrangement, saying Duterte wanted the trash to be returned to Canada at the soonest possible time. — RSJ, GMA News