RETURN TO SENDER Protesters tell Canada to take back tons of garbage illegally shipped to a port in Manila from Canada two years ago. NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
MANILA, Philippines–The Philippines has ruled out the possibility of sending back the 50 containers filled with garbage coming from Canada since the transactions that brought them here were purely commercial instead of government-to-government.
“Reexporting the trash is no longer part of the solution since Canada has no obligation to take it back. It is purely a commercial transaction,” Charles Jose, spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs, told reporters in a news briefing on Thursday.
While he said the Philippine government had pushed for the trash to be sent back to its point of origin, Canada insisted that with the private and commercial nature of the transaction, it had no obligation to get back the containers.
Going after Filipino importer
“We are going after the Filipino importer. We will see what the decision of the court will be,” he said.
The Bureau of Customs has filed a case against the Valenzuela City-based Chronic Plastics, the counterpart of the exporter Chronic Inc. based in Ontario.
Chronic Plastics owner Adelfa Eduardo and the company’s customs brokers, Leonora Flores and Sherjun Saldon, were charged with violation of Republic Act No. 6969 or the Act to Control Toxic Substances and Hazardous Nuclear Wastes, as well as violation of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines for the illegal importation.
Jose, however, noted that there were discussions between the Philippines and Canada on ways to resolve the issue.
“We view the shipments of wastes with great concern. We recognize that this is a grave matter that must be dealt with appropriately,” Jose said.
He said an interagency group led by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) had been formed “to make sure that no similar incident will happen again.
“The group is intensifying its collaboration and improving regulations to ensure the protection of our environment and our people,” he said.
President Aquino embarked on a three-day state visit to Canada from May 6 to 9 but Malacañang said the garbage issue would not be tackled with Ottawa officials, sparking an uproar among environmental groups in the country.
“I am sure at their end in Canada, they will be stricter in exporting such kind of materials,” Jose said.
Used diapers, kitchen waste
The vans containing household garbage, used diapers and kitchen waste have been stinking and posing health hazards in Subic and Manila ports for two years, according to environmental group EcoWaste Coalition.
The shipment, supposedly of recyclables from Vancouver, was made in 2013.
The DENR previously invoked the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes of which both countries are among the signatories in asking Canada to take back the garbage.
Adopted in 1989, the treaty was a response to international scandals regarding hazardous waste trafficking in the 1980s.