Bacolod City Administrator Lorendo Dilag yesterday said the Bacolod City government has no available funds yet to implement the sanitary landfill project required under R.A. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.

Several other local government units have also not complied with the requirement, he said, and the deadline for implementation is today.

Dilag said the city has no funds to buy land for purposes of a sanitary landfill. What it only has at present is a controlled dumpsite. He said the city will need about P40 million for land acquisition.

Dilag said that, out of the 35 lots considered by the city, five had been tested by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources which later recommended the Moya-Guanzon property in Brgy. Cabug as the proper site for a sanitary landfill. He said the city has visited the 32-hectare Moya-Guanzon property and its actual value is now being assessed.

Since the law requires LGU's to put up a buffer zone, the city will need about P45 million for the whole project, he added. Dilag said that, although R.A. 9003 provides penal sanctions for non compliance of the landfill requirement, this can be mitigated because the city has complied with the required 10-year master plan for its SWM program. He said the master plan was approved by the SWM Board three weeks ago and this will be officially submitted to the Mayor and the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod. The DENR will also be furnished a copy, he said.

Dilag also said he had written to four government banks to ask if the city could obtain a loan for land acquisition. He said only the Philippine National Bank is willing to extend a loan to the city, but did not specify any amount. He said Land Bank also wrote stating Bacolod can avail of P800 loan million but this can only be applied to infrastructure projects, like the city hall, and not for the purchase of land.

Meanwhile, Dilag said Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia appropriates a budget of P6 million annually for the SWM program. He said that last year, P3 million had already been released to the barangays and only four barangays out of 61, have not received their share because of their failure to submit the required program of works. These are barangays 15, 36, 41 and 3, he said. Dilag said the submission of the program of work is a requirement for the release of the SWM budget. He said the remaining P3 million SWM budget from last year will be added on to this year's SWM allocation amounting to P6 million.*CGS

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