The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Davao (DENR-11) is considering suspending the operations of the Davao City sanitary landfill in Barangay New Carmen following a trash slide on May 20, 2026.

The incident left one person dead and two others missing, as of this writing.

DENR-11 said the active disposal area of the landfill collapsed following days of heavy rains.

Authorities later declared the area unsafe for full entry, leading to a temporary suspension of waste disposal operations while engineers and technical teams assessed the extent of the collapse.

Based on inspections records, the landfill had been under close monitoring since January 2026.

The Environmental Management Bureau-Davao (EMB-11) conducted technical meetings with the city government in January and March and issued a Notice of Violation on March 19 for operating without a discharge permit, failing to meet effluent standards, and maintaining an insufficient leachate treatment system.

“A Technical Conference on April 29 resulted in the city committing to penalties and the submission of a pollution control program,” DENR-11 said.

DENR-11 also said earlier assessments noted steep slopes, a collapsed leachate pond, and informal settlers and waster pickers near the landfill perimeter.

This prompted to push the local government to accelerate stabilization measures at the site.

“These findings formed the basis of DENR recommendations for slope stabilization, partial closure of certain sections and relocation of households within the 200 meter buffer zone,” DENR-11 added.

DENR-11 said Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna underscored the urgency of corrective measures.

“Every life lost is unacceptable. The DENR and the LGU have been working together on the technical and regulatory requirements for months. This incident reinforces the need to accelerate slope stabilization and the safe closure plan,” he said.

DENR-11 said the landfill receives about 786 tons of waste daily and is nearing full capacity. A new sanitary landfill site nearby is already 52 percent complete.

Cuna said that once suspended, operations at the landfill will not resume until the site is declared safe.

“This is a moment for collaboration. We are committed to ensuring that Davao City’s waste facilities are safe, compliant and resilient,” Cuna added.