Face masks, trash found in watershed eyed as drinking water source in Davao

Used face masks and trash have found their way into a watershed that is being eyes a source of drinking water in Davao City, an environmental group said Wednesday.

Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (IDIS) executive director Mark Peñalver said his group used to retrieve around five to six sacks of trash from the Panigan Tamugan watershed a day.

On April 30, however, the group retrieved 25 sacks of trash.

“So surface source na po ‘yung tinatap ng water district for the future drinking water of Davao City [The water district in the area is now tapping surface water as source for the future drinking water of Davao City],” Peñalver said in a report by Mark Salazar’s report on “24 Oras.”

The IDIS suspected that the sacks of trash were washed down the river by the recent flooding in the Panigan Tamugan area.

“So ang assumption namin is medyo maliit ‘yung nakuha ngayon because ‘yung ibang waste is na-carry na ng river, no, papunta sa Davao River or doon sa labasan talaga [We assume that only a small amount of garbage had been collected by the local government because the remaining waste was swept away toward the Davao River or the mouth of the river],” he said.

The IDIS said it has already filed a complaint before the Davao City Government.

“To prohibit activities within the conservation area and to really monitor these activities in order to protect the integrity of the quality of water in Panigan Tamugan watershed,” he said.

An ordinance has already been passed requiring residents to separate their used face masks from normal household waste.

The Watershed Management Council has also passed a resolution to monitor the area.

“Incineration is not an option for face masks. because face masks are made of long-lasting plastic. So if you burn face masks, you create another problem, which is air pollution,” Peñalver said.

The group urged residents to do away with disposable face masks and use reusable or washable cloth ones instead.

“We haven’t yet seen really [a way] how to repurpose or how to properly manage this face mask?” he said.

“So the call of environmental organizations is for non-frontline persons to use reusable or washable face masks,” he added. —Joahna Lei Casilao/MDM/KG, GMA News