About 21 city and town mayors in Oriental Negros may face administrative charges for failure to establish sanitary landfills as mandated by Republic Act 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act.

Dumaguete City Community Environment and Natural Resources officer, Charlie Fabre, disclosed that their regional office had written to the mayors in mid-December yet, directing them to comply with RA 9003, otherwise, their dumpsites will be closed and they may face administrative charges.

Citing the law which took effect in 2001, Fabre said, within three years following its effectivity, all local government units in the country must convert their open dumpsite into a controlled one. All localities are then mandated to establish a sanitary landfill on or before Jan. 26, 2006.

The law, he added, also provides that chief executives of LGUs and personnel of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources who fail to comply with the mandate will be facing administrative sanctions.

Mario Aragon, environmental management specialist of the DENR in Central Visayas, said as the term suggests, "open dumpsite" means the disposal of garbage is not controlled, while a controlled dumpsite is one wherein the garbage is being covered immediately after being dumped.

A sanitary landfill, he said, is one which is highly developed, employing facilities and equipment that effectively disposes the garbage, such as separating the solid from liquid wastes, and treating them in such a way that it will not adversely affect the environment.

Aragon said that in Oriental Negros only the cities of Bais, Canlaon and Bayawan and the town of San Jose which were not issued the order have complied or are complying with the provisions of RA 9003.

The LGUs which were directed to comply with the mandate of the law were the towns of Basay, Sta. Catalina, Siaton, Zamboanguita, Dauin, Bacong, Valencia, Sibulan, Amlan, Pamplona, Mabinay, Manjuyod, Bindoy, Ayungon, Tayasan, Jimalalud, La Libertad, Guihulngan and Vallehermoso, and the cities of Dumaguete and Tanjay.

But Aragon and Fabre agreed that it is not that easy to establish the sanitary landfill because, for one, it requires a huge amount of money.

Fabre said, however, he will call for a meeting with the mayors under his jurisdiction to find ways on how to remedy the concern, saying, as much as possible, he would like to avoid any litigation.*RA

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