DENR greenlights materials recovery facility in Baguio City

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Cordillera Administrative Region (DENR-CAR) has approved the construction of a materials recovery facility in Barangay Dontogan in Baguio City which is expected reduce the amount of wastes bound for landfills.

The department recently awarded the environmental clearance to the upcoming Central Materials Recovery Facility.

According to the DENR, the facility can process up to 150,000 tons of wastes annually through mechanized sorting, composting, and materials recovery systems.

The facility will have a 1,600-square-meter main building.

"Logistics and site safety are supported by dedicated truck landing and parking zones, 3,107 square meters of access roads, open work slabs, comprehensive drainage systems, and reinforced concrete-barrier retaining walls. To cushion its ecological footprint, 2,240 square meters of cleared land will be re-vegetated with endemic trees planted in a staggered grid," the DENR-CAR said in a statement.

"Inside, the facility will deploy specialized equipment—including box feeders, debaggers, trommel screens, 10-ton composting units, air separators, illuminated sorting platforms, and hydraulic balers—to maximize materials recovery," it added.

The facility also features air quality and odor control management through high-capacity exhaust systems, bio enzymatic misters, HEPA-filter vacuums, and wet-packed scrubbers specifically engineered to neutralize hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and methane emissions.

Aside from slashing the amount of landfill-bound wastes, the facility is also expected to lower costs for hauling services to external landfills.

"As per the Baguio City Public Information Office (PIO), Baguio spends up to 200 million pesos annually just to haul the city’s residual waste to the Urdaneta City engineered sanitary landfill," the DENR-CAR said.

"Beyond streamlining solid waste operations, the Central MRF offers Baguio City a clear path toward reducing its heavy waste management costs."

The DENR earlier said that more than 60,000 tons of waste are being generated daily nationwide, with only 52% of the country's waste being collected, the DENR earlier said.

Last January, the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) approved Baguio City's solid waste management plan until 2034. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/KG, GMA News