The Ilocos Times

Houston , we have a problem. No—on second thought—it’s not just a problem. It’s a dilemma. Actually, let’s not kid ourselves. It’s both. So, what is it? We’re producing so much used cooking oil that if we’re not careful, it could be clogging our drainage systems—assuming, of course, that we have proper drainage systems in the first place. If we don’t, then it’s clogging whatever passes for a drainage system in many of our cities. The logical thing to do would be to collect this oil and recycle it. But here’s where the “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” part kicks in. If you do collect it, you could be accused of transporting hazardous waste and fined. If you don’t, you risk pouring it into our waterways, blocking pipes, causing floods, and polluting aquifers. Why? Because under Republic Act 6969—the Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act—used cooking oil can be classified as hazardous waste. That means it’s subject to strict rules on collection, st...

The  Philippine Coconut Authority, in cooperation with the city government of Laoag, headed by Laoag Mayor James Bryan Alcid, plant 600 coconut seedlings in Barangay Navotas-B in this city. (Doms dela Cruz)

We already know that coal-fired power plants continue to operate across the country. What we don’t always know is how we are disposing of the toxic byproducts they produce—especially coal ash . Coal ash, which includes both fly ash and bottom ash , is a waste product from burning coal. It contains heavy metals like arsenic , mercury , and lead —substances we do not want to leak into our air, soil, or water. Yes, of course, there are laws regulating the disposal of coal ash. We have a comprehensive legal framework: RA 6969 controls hazardous waste RA 8749 (Clean Air Act) regulates emissions and ash pollution RA 9003 governs solid waste DENR AO 2004-36 lays out how hazardous waste should be handled And even the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) touches on coal ash contracts That’s impressive on paper. But here’s the real question: How do we know how much of these laws are being implemented? There are agencies that are supposed to do the job—the DENR, its E...

Let’s stop pretending that recycling in the Philippines is succeeding. Despite years of government campaigns urging residents and businesses to segregate their waste, we’re still burying recyclables in landfills or leaving them to rot in dumpsites. Why? Because even when we segregate, the system doesn’t work. Garbage trucks still mix everything together. Segregated bags from households and commercial buildings often end up thrown into the same compactor, as if the effort was all for show. What’s going on here? We keep encouraging people to segregate their trash, but there’s no real infrastructure to support it. It’s like asking someone to save water in a house with broken pipes. We’ve heard the phrase many times— “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”—but how can people recycle when the government doesn’t even honor their efforts? I see it in my own neighborhood. I separate paper, plastics, bottles—but when the garbage truck arrives, the collectors lump it all together. What message does th...

Who was that senatorial candidate who boldly declared that if elected, he would not propose any new laws because we already have enough? Crazy as he might have sounded to some, there is a ring of truth to his words. We do have enough laws. The real problem is that we are far too slow in implementing them—even though we are too fast in passing them. Yes, that is the grand irony of our legislative system: we keep churning out new laws, yet we neglect to implement them. Equally ironic is that we do not revisit our old laws that clearly need to be updated. In fact, the “new” laws we need are those that refine and modernize existing ones—not add to the pile of unread statutes collecting dust. Talking of ironies, one of the most glaring is how our environmental laws are being ignored—ironically treated like garbage. Republic Act No. 9003, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, is a prime example. Despite its clear and detailed mandates, it is often overlooked. Our waste managem...

By Leilanie G. Adriano Currimao , Ilocos Norte—At least 35 baby sea turtles from a guarded hatchery in a barangay in this town were guided back to the wild on Jan. 29, 2025. Engineer Erickson Biag, Currimao municipal environment officer-designate, told The Ilocos Times in a phone interview that barangay officials of Brgy. Paguludan, are monitoring the pawikan hatchery. He said the latest batch of released hatchlings are on top of the 32 hatchlings that emerged from the relocated sea turtle eggs last December, guarded to keep them safe during high tide and protect them from predators. “The pawikan eggs in the first nest were laid last December and we are counting 52 days for them to emerge and guide them back to their natural habitat,” he explained. Biag added there are two more nests at the hatchery and they are expecting them to emerge until February. The pawikan hatchery in Currimao town was established last year and the coastal barangays of Pangil all the way to Pagu...

WASTE MANAGEMENT. Residents of San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte trade in their wastes for household and school essentials in this undated photo. The waste diversion project has reduced the volume of discarded materials in sanitary landfills. (Photo courtesy of PBMES) By Leilanie Adriano San Nicolas , Ilocos Norte—Residents of this town have shown overwhelming support for the local government's waste management efforts by participating in the “Palit-Basura” program that allows them to swap discarded materials for school and household essentials. Orlando Pascua, principal of the Pasion-Barangay Memorial Elementary School, said that the program encourages responsible waste management. Teachers, students and parents gather discarded materials such as plastic wrappers, shampoo sachets and other packaging materials and traded them at the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO) for corresponding points every Tuesday and Thursday. Through the program, Pascua said educat...

For so many years now, many LGUs have been trying to implement waste recycling programs in their own localities, but very few seem to have succeeded. By the looks of it, many local officials seem resigned to the idea of doing the same thing repeatedly, and expecting different results, which is Einstein’s definition of insanity. Is it therefore the time now to try something different? So that we could have different results? Instead of just having one type of garbage truck picking up both biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste materials, why not have two separate trucks to do that, with two separate schedules? That way, the biodegradable waste, which is mostly food waste, could be brought directly to a biodigester facility, where these could be composted and converted to organic fertilizer. Without the biodegradable waste, it would be easier to sort the non-biodegradable waste, which is mostly recyclables. Better still, we should make it compulsory to sort or segregate the non...

Zero waste management is an approach that aims to minimize the amount of waste generated and sent to landfills or incinerators by promoting waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting. Proper waste segregation is a fundamental step in zero waste management, as it allows for the efficient sorting of waste materials to facilitate recycling and composting processes. Here are the steps involved in zero waste management relative to waste segregation, from collecting waste to recycling to proper waste disposal:   Waste Collection The first step in zero waste management is the collection of waste from households, businesses, and public areas. Waste collection systems should be organized to ensure that different types of waste are collected separately to facilitate segregation at the source.   Waste Segregation Waste segregation involves sorting waste into different categories based on their composition and recyclability. Common segregation categories include biode...

By Dominic B. dela Cruz ( Staff Reporter) Laoag City —In a move to help avoid future wide-scale flooding in the province and with the effect of typhoon Ineng in 2019 still fresh on everyone’s minds, the provincial government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN) along with four government agencies officially launched Phase 1 of the Padsan River Restoration Project through a ceremonial dredging in Metro Gabu, this city, on Dec. 15, 2022. PGIN, through the Provincial Quarry Office, has been collaborating with the Depts. of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and DENR’s Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) and Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), as well as the official contractor, He Sha Prime Sand & Gravel Aggregates Philippines Inc., to conduct vital research, studies, and campaigns for the project. Present during the ceremonial dredging were Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc, Ilocos Norte Vice Governor Cecilia Araneta-Marcos, regional d...

The waste issue is a global problem as shown here in a photo of a dump site that can be found everywhere in the world. (File photo) By Dominic B. dela Cruz ( Staff Reporter) Laoag City —In a concerted effort and continuing action of a global scale to address the negative impact of the excessive use and disposal of hazardous wastes, the city government here has reiterated the ban on the use of plastic bags and Styrofoam packaging. City environment and natural resources officer (CENRO) Mylene Isabel Pascual said the use of said packaging has resulted in environmental degradation, flooding, problems on sanitation and worst of all, climate change. The local government units (LGUs) “has a sublime responsibility must have to protect the constituency from the harmful or even fatal effects as ill results of disregarding the environment and therefore must support this move to save Mother Earth from total degradation”. Citing Article II Section 6 of the Philippine Constitution, it provid...

ECO-FRIENDLY. On Oct. 20, 2021, a worker at the newly-inaugurated Ilocos Norte Eco Hub demonstrates to local officials of the province led by Vice Governor Cecilia Araneta Marcos how the stripped plastic sachets are mix with cement to produce eco-bricks. Also shown in the background photo are eco-bricks used in the construction of the first eco hub in the province which is envisioned to be replicated in various parts of the province to help beat plastic pollution. ( Lei G. Adriano) Leilanie G. Adriano ( Staff Reporter) LAOAG CITY—The province of Ilocos Norte is heading towards beating plastic pollution with the manufacturing of eco-bricks using recycled plastic wastes for construction purposes. Located along the national highway at Sitio Bato, Brgy. Tonoton in Piddig, Ilocos Norte the project is a model eco hub recycling facility, the first of its kind in Ilocos region. Through a public and private partnership agreement between the Ayala-led renewable energy corporation-North Luzon...

Heads and officers of Green Antz Builders and the Ayala Corporation with Ilocos Norte Vice Governor Cecilia Marcos-Araneta and Piddig Mayor Eddie Guillen lead the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ilocos Norte Eco Hub located at Brgy. Tonoton in Piddig, Ilocos Norte. ( Green Antz Builders photo) By Dominic B. dela Cruz ( Staff Reporter) Piddig , Ilocos Norte—First in Ilocos. The Green Antz Builders and the Ayala Renewable Energy Corporation in cooperation with the provincial government of Ilocos Norte and the municipal government of Piddig launched the first EcoHub recycling facility, dubbed as Green Antz Ilocos Norte EcoHub, with the ground breaking ceremony held at Sitio Bato, Brgy. 6 Tonoton in Piddig, Ilocos Norte on July 30, 2021. The “eco-friendly project” aims to convert plastic wastes into hollow blocks and bricks for construction purposes. Piddig Mayor Eddie Guillen thanked the two big companies as this project is part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) to Ilo...

Laoag City —The Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) and the city government of Laoag will soon establish a nipa plantation in the city of Laoag. In a resolution, certified as urgent by Laoag Mayor Michael M. Keon, and unanimously approved by the city council sponsored by the committee of the whole led by Laoag councilor Juan Conrado Respicio as movant, MMSU and Laoag City will enter a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for the said purpose. Respicio, who chairs the committee on ethics, rules and regulations, said the nipa resource establishment supports the “Expanded National Greening Program” and the production of bio-ethanol, a climate change mitigation and a source of livelihood. The nipa, which is a mangrove species, has been shown by MMSU as a promising source of bioethanol to augment the shortage of locally produced bioethanol as required by RA 9367 known as Biofuels Act of 2006 and reduce the country’s dependency on imported fossil fuels. “The valuable economic and ecologi...

By Dominic B. dela Cruz  (Staff Reporter) City of Batac —Mayor Albert D. Chua recently confirmed that a developer has approached the city government to put up a large-scale solar power plant at Brgys. Camandingan, San Pedro and Biningan in this city. In view of this, Chua endorsed the letter of intent submitted by Apolaki One, Inc. to the Sangguniang Panlungsod here for evaluation and deliberation. He added that the city council will also verify whether the mentioned barangays are incorporated in the city’s 10-year development plan of the city as some areas of those barangays can be water sources and tourist destinations. Chua added that the proposed power plant is a lengthy project that needs thorough study as well as the approval of the Dept. of Energy, Dept. Environment and Natural Resources and other national agencies. The mayor also said that it will also require resolutions from the identified barangays and the Sangguniang Panlungsod. The mayor disclosed that the deve...

BACK INTO THE SEA. Sea turtles find their way home after their accidental capture by a fishing gear on Feb. 25, 2021. The female Olive Ridley turtles weighed approximately eight to 10.5 kilos each. ( Photo courtesy of Raymond Sesuca) By Leilanie G. Adriano  (Staff Reporter) Pagudpud , Ilocos Norte—Three more female green sea turtles, weighing approximately eight to 10.5 kilos each, were found and rescued at Ayoyo Cove along Brgy. Caparispisan, this town on Feb. 25, 2021. The village hosts an 81-megawatt wind farm covering a 625-hectare forest reserve. At around 6:30 am, local fishermen said their fishing gear accidentally captured the reptiles, prompting them to call the attention of barangay officials and volunteers of the Pagudpud Pawikan Conservation Group patrolling the shoreline for possible nesting and hatching events during this time of turtle migration period. Raymond Sesuca, a volunteer of the said group and corporate social responsibility (CSR) ...