Heavy rain, winds brings trash to Manila Bay’s breakwater

Published July 13, 2015 5:46pm

Heavy rain and winds caused by the enhanced southwest monsoon last week caused trash to accumulate along the breakwater of the Manila Bay.

A Balitanghali report said men from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) began collecting trash from the breakwater of Manila Bay at 4 a.m. Monday.

Trash lined the breakwater from the United States Embassy to Rajah Sulayman Park, the report said.

It added that each MMDA personnel were quickly able to fill their containers because of the amount of trash there. The truck they used to remove waste in the area also had to make several trips.

MMDA chair Francis Tolentino asked residents not to throw their trash in rivers or streams.

"Kapag tinapon mo sa ilog o estero, dito ang punta. Kaya nakakalungkot kasi pinupuntahan ng isda ito (Manila Bay)," he said.

Catchbasin

In a separate interview with QRT, Tolentino said trash in pumping stations is a recurring problem even on good weather, adding that it is not the stations' job to collect waste.

"Sa Manila Bay, kapag may habagat, 'yan talaga ang catchbasin natin. 'Yung mga tinatapon sa mga ilog at waterways, doon ang punta, so talagang nakakalungkot at wala tayong katapusan diyan. Nakakatakot rin 'yan for health reasons.

He said that the MMDA has collected at least 12 trucks of waste on Monday morning and their efforts have been "labor-intensive" in gathering trash, especially in places that equipment couldn't reach.

"Nadagdagan pa 'yan ngayong hapon na ito," he said. "Hindi lang naman sa atin nanggagaling ito, [pati na rin sa mga] coastal towns." -Rose-An Jessica Dioquino/NB, GMA News

Tags: trash, manilabay, habagat, tsegay, typhoonfalcon