AN ASSESSMENT ABOUT PHILIPPINE WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND ITS RELEVANCE TO

BASELINE SOCIO ECONOMIC LEVEL OF BARANGAY PAYATAS, QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES

A policy research subject to presentation for the World Conference for Public Administration at Daegu,

South Korea.

June 25th-27th, 2014

Researchers:

Paul Symon F. Madera

Lance Melendrez

Erwin S. Perez

[2]

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

My deep gratitude goes to POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

for bringing us a wealth of wisdom, experience,

and most of all, a new family.

I would like to extend my appreciation to…

SKARSTEN and DE VERA FAMILY, and MRS. JANETTE MENDOZA for generously supporting

my expenses that’s why I’m in front of everyone here in Daegu, South Korea.

My policy paper adviser, PROF. ANTONIUS UMALI

for lending me his time and expert advise on Solid Waste Management.

My classmate ARVIN JAY VILLANUEVA and my brother PAUL JOHN MADERA

for taking time to assist me in my research.

my big, and fun-loving Bachelor in Political Science 4-1 family…

Thank you for embracing me into your midst.

I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to spend for almost four years.

My close friends and peers out there in the Philippines,

whose untiring and generous support in all my endeavors have cheered me on.

Most of all, to the Almighty Father for giving me strength and grace.

[3]

DEDICATION

- . - . - . - . - . - . - . -

This work is dedicated to my family

* Papa Jun, Mama Julie and Kuya Peejhaye *

And to Mirachael Mendoza

without whose love and support, all is meaningless.

o O o O o O o O o

[4]

ABSTRACT

Every day we are producing enough waste to pollute the entire world. As we progress, it is

affiliated by bigger problem which is pollution. Pollution is a worldwide problem which causes many

diseases that can harm us. It is also the main source of the deterioration of environment.

Being over-reliant on the use of technologies, even for individual or societal usage, it could lead

to gradual destruction or breakdown of the environment which is known as pollution. Pollution,

pertaining to garbage pollution is hard to eliminate for today, it is now an aggravate and observable

condition in the status quo. Usually, it occurs to urban, sub urban, and mostly to highly urbanized

locality. So, to solve this growing problem of pollution, we should come up with the plan that would help

us to avoid improper waste disposal. The solution is proper waste management. Waste management is

the collection, transport, processing or disposal, managing and monitoring of waste materials. In this

case, it is necessary to imply discipline of an individual. It comes by proper segregation of the waste,

biodegradable and non-biodegradable. In this, it will help us to minimize the worsening of the said

problem. But it can be only done with the discipline of an individual.

Why do we say so? Because we do believe that solving big things start at small things. In real

speaking, to mitigate this garbage pollution, particularly in land, the existing society must have this

waste management. Not just a waste management by name but it must be proper waste management.

It is important that there is proper managing of how this garbage collected, transported to a secluded

place, processing of how it undergoes decomposition. By this protocol, it could promote sanity to those

people who’s inside the sphere of this urban premise. As sanity was being impose, health among them

increases and could lead to disease-free zone to all those possible diseases that humans could get if

there will be an improper waste management in a society. If proper management will be uplift,

pandemic and epidemic diseases could be lessen from its spread to the environment because it is

proven that a dirty surrounding is prone to diseases. Whether that particular society has a high level of

health services, this could be gone to waste if there is inconsistency maintenance of surrounding’s

cleanliness. We believe that maintaining this kind of cleanliness could make society more productive and

less prone to sickness. Why? Because a society that has its level of cleanliness could deprive citizen on

acquiring diseases. If this could happen, i.e. an individual that healthy could perform well than an

individual that is sickly because a healthy individual could lend more focus and could do more jobs than

this sickly individual who’s performance is weak and losing its focus on work. Productivity of one’s

premise, economically and socially, would be increased if cleanliness is maintained. And this is why we

are promoting for some implantation regarding on proper waste management. We believe that great

things come from simple steps.

How is this important? It is essential due to its contingent of our health in which we need to live

the fullest. However, there's an affiliate responsibility in which we need to fulfill. We should coordinate

with one another to commit this kind of success.

[5]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

CHAPTERS/TOPICS

CHAPTER I: THE CONTEXT OF THE POLICY ISSUE

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Statement of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Significance of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Scope and Limitations of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Related Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Related Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

CHAPTER III: THE RESEARCH FRAMEWORK

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Conceptual Framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Definition of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

CHAPTER IV: METHODOLOGY

Research Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

CHAPTER V: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33-47

CHAPTER VI: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48-50

REFERENCES CITED

[6]

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Mode of Disposing Solid Waste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Table 2. Frequency of Collection Solid Waste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Table 3. Compliance with Environmental Laws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Table 4. Distribution According to the Type of Canal and Sufficiency During Rainy Days . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Table 5. Knowledge of Availability of Livelihood Projects by Provider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Table 6. Availability of Nearby Health Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Table 7. Availability of Health Services by Type of Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Table 8. Availability of Medicine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Table 9. Sufficiency of Quantity of Medicine Obtained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Table 10. Most Common Ilnesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Table 11. Households With 0-6 Year Old Children Who Are Underweight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Table 12. Membership in Social Security Schemes (18 and above) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Table 13. Employment Status of Household Members Who Are 15 to 65 Years Old . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Table 14. Individual Monthly Income (15-65 Years Old) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Table 15. Educational Attainment (15-65 Years Old.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41-42

Table 16. Educational Attainment and Income (5-65 Years Old) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42-43

Table 17. Distribution of Households According to Percentage of Income Spent on Water . . . . . . 43-44

Table 18. Distribution of Households According to Clarity, Smell and Taste of Water . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Table 19. Distribution of Households According to Type of Water Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Table 20. Distribution of Households According to Type of and Exclusivity of the Use of Toilet . . . . 46

Table 21. Distribution of Households According to Type of Septic Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46-47

[7]

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Quezon City within the scope of NCR (Metro Manila) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Figure 2: Map of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Figure 3: Framework for analyzing the concept of Integrated SWM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Figure 4: Waste Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Figure 5: Overview of the Conceptual Framework of MSWM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

[8]

CHAPTER I

THE CONTEXT OF THE POLICY ISSUE

Introduction:

Pollution is one of major public problem as industrialization arises. As industrialization of many

city-states and countries continue to expand its scope, inevitably, environment is being harmed by these

technologies and mechanisms needed for industrialized productions. As industrialization brings bright

future of employment, individual’s standard of living, and country’s progress towards global

competition, its detriment includes deteriorating ecological balance, unhealthy condition of human

beings and could be the cause of degrading economic growth of one’s locale.

The only solution to mitigate the possible detriments of industrialization is to have a proper

waste management. What is waste management? It is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,

managing and monitoring of waste materials. In the status quo, waste management obviously exists but

why is it that the issue of pollution, pertaining to garbage pollution, is still increasing its scope of effect

as years pass by? Is it still the burden of the government or the problem now emanates of people itself?

Does pollution inevitable because of lack of implementation on having proper waste management or it

is now the lack of responsibility and discipline of people?

The National Capital Region, Quezon City and

Barangay Payatas Profile1

The National Capital Region (NCR), more commonly

referred to as Metropolitan Manila, is the country's

premiere urban region and considered to be the political,

economic, social and cultural center of the Philippines.

Among the 17 administrative regions, NCR had the second

largest population with 11.86 million (2010 census of

population, NSO- National Statistics Office) in an area of 636

square kilometers. NCR is bordered by the provinces of

Bulacan to the north, Rizal to the east, Cavite to the south-

west and Laguna to the south. Manila Bay lies to the west

and Laguna de Bay to the south-east.

It is the only region without any province but is

instead subdivided into 17 local government units (LGUs)

compromising of 16 cities and one municipality. The 16

cities include: Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela,

Quezon City, Marikina, Pasig, Taguig, Makati, Manila, Mandaluyong, San Juan, Pasay, Paranaque, Las

Pinas and Muntinlupa. Pateros is the lone municipality in the region. Each of the 16 cities and one

1 Picture of Quezon City taken from www.dumagueteinfo.com

Figure 1: Quezon City within the scope of NCR (Metro Manila)

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municipality in Metro Manila is governed by a Mayor. Of the 17 LGUs, Quezon City has the biggest land

area of 161.12 sq. km. constituting one-fourth of the total land area of NCR. The smallest area is the

Municipality of Pateros with a total land area of only 2.10 sq. kms.2

QUEZON CITY is located near the center of Metro Manila, towards its northeastern portion. It is

bordered by Manila to the southwest, by Caloocan City and Valenzuela City to the west and northwest.

Towards the south, lies San Juan and Mandaluyong City, while Marikina City and Pasig City borders

Quezon City to the southeast. Towards the north, across Marilao River, lies San Jose del Monte City in

the province of Bulacan, and towards the east, lies Rodriguez and San Mateo, both in the province of

Rizal.

Located at the heart of Metro Manila, Quezon City is also its strategic convergence point for the

metropolitan road and transportation networks, making the City an ideal distribution hub. It is easily

accessible from the major highways, thoroughfares and mass rail transit systems of the metropolis.3

To complete our research about this issue, we selected Quezon City, particularly Barangay

Payatas, as the setting of our data gathering and assessments about waste management system.

Figure 2: Map of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City

2 National Capital Region Profile (www.gazette.ph)

3 City of Quezon Profile: Geography (www.quezoncity.gov.ph)

[10]

BARANGAY PAYATAS is a predominantly urban poor barangay4 in the north-eastern district of

Quezon City which is within Metropolitan Manila. It has been a disposal site for the city’s solid waste for

over two decades and is currently the main dumping ground for the city’s garbage. Little was known

about Payatas until the official closure of the “Smokey Mountain” dump site in 1995 which made the

Payatas dump site, a 15-hectare open pit, the biggest and oldest operating open dump site in Metro

Manila. It also caused the dump site to become a major public concern, the next “Smokey Mountain”

amid the mounting garbage crisis. There is no official record of the population numbers for the 3,019

hectare barangay; official figures are based on the registered voting population in Payatas, which is

currently 32,000. This makes it the second largest voting population among the barangays in Quezon

City. While the population in Payatas has been steadily increasing since the 1970s, there was a sudden

upsurge in the population after 1986 and and in the early 1990s, when large numbers of urban poor

were relocated by the local government to Payatas from various slum settlements in Quezon City. The

Payatas dump site has provided both a home and a livelihood to about 4,000 scavenger families within

and outside the barangay, who have long considered solid waste as a resource to be recovered. The

scavengers of Payatas have been living off the dump sites for as long as the dump sites have been there,

i.e. since the early 1970s. This lowly regarded workforce consists of expert but under-compensated

waste pickers, including women and children, who supply recyclable materials to established waste

recovery and recycling businesses. Managing to subsist in the shadow of these big junk shops are

pockets of home based micro-enterprises engaged in the recovery, recycling and re-use of solid waste

materials for ornamental and functional purposes such as wall decorations, tin craft, laundry brushes

and dust pans. The “informal” status of these waste resourced businesses, however, makes them easy

prey for usurious money lenders.5

The Purpose and Justification of the Selection of the Locus of this Study

The purpose of this study is to reveal if implementation of waste management has its relevance

to the health condition of citizens and to the socio-economic activities of one’s locale towards inclusive

economic growth. This study could also be helpful on addressing public issues concerning the

environment and to future researchers whose interest was in line to environmental studies.

Why Quezon City and Barangay Payatas?

Quezon City, as we all know, is one of the biggest cities in the Philippines in terms of size and

population. It is also one of the most urbanized. Thus, it is beset with the problems that usually come

with urbanization such as poverty and homelessness. In fact, Quezon City has the highest population of

urban poor households in the whole country. Thus, in term s of magnitude and incidence of poverty, it

makes sense that Quezon City should be priority in terms of any anti-poverty interventions. Among its

many districts, it is District 2 that is home to most of this urban poor population. Thus, the focus should

4 Barangay is the smallest political unit in the Philippines

5 The Payatas Environmental Development Programme: microenterprise promotion and involvement in solid waste

management in Quezon City, Introduction, Page 1, (Vincentian Missionaries, 1998)

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be on this district. Moreover, many of the PHILSSA6 members operate in this district. Thus, we are

assured that the study would be used by them and not end up as just another useless survey.7

Of all the barangays in Quezon City, we saw Payatas as the suitable locus for the continuity of

this study. Thus, Payatas prevailed the easiest and convenient information it could give on our team

about the hierarchy of socio-economic condition of its people and a good reference point for the

relevance of WM8 to the health condition of its people and the sanitation of the above mentioned

barangay. Although the area was noted as “over-studied”, we are confident enough that this is still the

best area for us to have this paper a successful one.

Statement of the Policy Issue/Problem:

The researchers found that the problem about Philippine waste management is the inevitable

and increasing harms of pollution being experienced by the people of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City

although there is an existing implementation to minimize this problem. Leaving a question: Is waste

management in Barangay Payatas, Quezon City being implemented and monitored properly by an

existing authority responsible for it? Underlying this specific problem are the collaterals:

1. Does waste management affect the living condition of the residence of Barangay Payatas,

Quezon City?

2. Does poor waste management system could affect the economic activities and growth of

Barangay Payatas, Quezon City?

Objective:

The objective of our policy research paper is to reveal if there is a gridlock happening on waste

management system of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City and if this could have a direct impact on about

the socio-economic status of its residence.

Significance of the Study:

The study is significant to the following people and community and other social institutions and

its explanation why it is relevant to them:

To the researcher, it is important for us to have awareness on how the government addresses public

problem for the benefit of all. It could be a helping factor for us as Political Science students for us to

have a better understanding about the reality of Public Administration and to correct the flaws we will

see by revealing what is true and correct that will be helpful on reframing an existing policy.

6 Philippine Support Services Agencies Inc.

7 2007 Baseline Socio-Economic Survey of Brgy. Payatas, Quezon City, Background and Rationale, Page 2, (JJCICSI &

PHILSAA, 2007) 8 Abbrv.: Waste Management

[12]

To co-students, it is important to my co-students because this policy research gives them vital

information about the status quo of environment’s condition so they could be wary of what’s happening

and be the one to be an advocate of helping to restoring and protecting the environment.

To the community, this policy research could serve as an inspiration to the people of Barangay

Payatas, Quezon City for them to be model of change on preserving their surroundings on having a good

waste management system to avoid on having the harms of increasing effect of pollution pertaining to

garbage.

To the Government- if this policy research would have a successful result, this could be a medium

for the Government to be more wary about pollution and its collateral effects to its citizens for them to

mitigate the further deterioration of its economic activities. With this, the Government could enact

other statutes in relations to environment care and amend those existing statutes to improve the

existing mechanisms and frameworks on mitigating pollution and protecting the environment per se.

Scope and Limitations of the Study:

Scope- This study would encompass and is only limited to the locality of Barangay Payatas,

Quezon City.

Limitation- The coverage of the study is limited only on the acquisition of statistical data for

health information system of Barangay Payatas and only to the ordinances implemented

concerning on its waste management system.

[13]

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Related Literatures:

“Solid waste is an environmental problem that has reached critical proportions in the

Philippines. Due to a growing population, rapidly increasing consumption and increasing urbanization,

waste generated in the Philippines is estimated at 19,700 tons per day. Projections show that waste

generation will increase 47 percent by 2010, or 28,875 tons per day.

SWM9 is the responsibility of local government units (LGUs), i.e., barangays (the smallest

political unit composed of 50-100 families), municipalities, cities and provincial governments. There are

41,392 barangays, 1502 municipalities, 116 cities and 71 provinces nationwide.

The barangay is responsible for the segregation of waste at source, collection of biodegradable

and recyclable components and setting up of a materials recovery facility (MRF). There are about 976

MRFs nationwide. The municipality or city governments are responsible for the collection and disposal

of residual nonbiodegradable and hazardous waste, except in Metro Manila where disposal is within the

mandate of the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

Republic Act (RA) No. 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000) was signed into

law in January 2000 to address the gargantuan solid waste problem of the Philippines. It espouses the

reuse, recovery and recycling of MSW, with special emphasis on composting, as opposed to outright

disposal. RA 9003 set February 2004 as the deadline for shifting from open to controlled dumping. By

February 2006, the law states that controlled dumpsites will be deemed closed and phased out. RA 9003

does not specify what type of disposal facility should be operated when the controlled dumpsites are

phased out. However, the law contains minimum requirements for designing SLFs as well as minimum

considerations for operating SLFs.”10

"This is an Act providing for ESWM program, creating the necessary institutional mechanisms and

incentives declaring certain acts prohibited and providing penalties, appropriating funds therefore and

for other purposes.

The basic policies of RA 9003:

A) Ensure the protection of public health and environment; B) Utilize environmentally sound methods that maximize the utilization of valuable resources

and encourage resources conservation and recovery; C) Set guidelines and targets for solid waste avoidance and volume reduction through source

reduction and waste minimization measures, including composting, recycling, re-use, recovery, green charcoal process, and others, before collection, treatment and disposal

9 Solid Waste Management

10 (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ilo/2005/12/11/news/environment.presents.ra.9003.html, 2005)

[14]

inappropriate and environmentally sound solid waste management facilities in accordance with ecologically sustainable development principles;

D) Ensure the proper segregation, collection, transport, storage, treatment and disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adoption of the best environmental practices in ecological waste management excluding incineration;

E) Promote national research and development programs for improved solid waste management and resource conservation techniques, more effective institutional arrangement and indigenous and improved methods of waste reduction, collection, separation and recovery.

F) Encourage greater private sector participation in solid waste management G) Retain primary enforcement and responsibility of solid waste management with local

government units while establishing a cooperative effort among the national government, other local government units (LGUs), non-government organizations and the private sector;

H) Encourage cooperation and self-regulation among waste generators through the application of market-based instruments;

I) Institutionalize public participation in the development and the implementation of national and local integrated, comprehensive and ecological waste management programs; and

J) Strengthen the integration of ecological solid waste management and resource conservation and recovery topics into the academic curricula of formal and non-formal education in order to promote environmental awareness among the citizenry.”11

Related Studies:

Aims & Objectives

“The thesis endeavors to present solid waste management in Metro Manila as a system and recommend solutions using a systems approach. The specific aims are the following: • To present the current state of SWM in Metro Manila, the challenges it faces and the actors involved. • To analyze the relationships between significant elements in the Metro Manila SWM system using causal loop analysis. • To create models to illustrate these relationships. • To create and model scenarios wherein different solutions in the SWM system are applied. • To evaluate the effect of these improvements to the SWM system. • To recommend and discuss applicable solutions to the SWM system. Methodology 5.1. Data Collection

Since MMDA ceased operation of its website where most official data are available, data collection presented a problem. There was, therefore, a need to visit the Metro Manila

11

Philippine Government. Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. Quezon City. Philippine Legislature, 2000

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Development Authority Office in Metro Manila, Philippines to obtain hard copies of studies and official files containing useful information and data. Interviews were also conducted by the researcher among personnel in the MMDA’s Solid Waste Management Division as well as with the head of Mother Earth Philippines, an NGO that is actively involved in solid waste management developments in Metro Manila.

Extensive research over the internet was done to obtain studies, reports, conference papers,

documents and data from relevant bodies. Part of the data used, particularly statistical data, were obtained from the websites of the National Statistics Office (NSO) and NSCB. 6.2 Causal Loop Analysis

Figure 6.5 depicts the current SWM system in Metro Manila. Economic development is a factor to the rise in per capita rate of generation. As incomes increase because of economic development, so does the rate of waste generation. This and a rising population results to a rise in total waste generated. The higher the total waste generation is, the more waste there is to be dealt with.

There is more waste recycled as the total amount of waste increases. Recycling, in turn, helps

reduce the stock of waste. Likewise, there will be more waste treated through backyard burning by the residents with the increase in waste. This also decreases the existing waste stock.

Because there is more waste, waste collection increases. An increase in waste collection increases both controlled and open dumping activities. These increase SWM costs, which deplete the SWM budget. The budget is replenished each year and its allocation increases with increasing economic development.

Leftover wastes end up littered in the streets, public places and bodies of water. The more wastes, the more littering. The more this happens; there is more garbage that municipal service deal with. As more waste is recovered by municipal services, rate of waste generation also increases as these go back into the waste stream.

MMDA’s track record of open dumping and the visible littering of garbage in Metro Manila are

factors that directly affect the growth of NIMBY among Manileños and people from neighboring towns. An increase in NIMBY increases SWM costs. Out of all the elements in Figure 6.5, economic development, per capita waste generation and population are the strongest factors influencing total waste generation. 6.3.1 Scenario A – Business as Usual

Under the current SWM situation it is assumed that total waste generation rises with economic development. In Graph 6.1, the steady rise in waste generation influences a similar trend in recycling, collected wastes, littering and burning. The effects of the garbage crisis that occurred after the San Mateo Landfill was closed in December 2000 and before the MSWDF opened is observable in the graph, especially for the amount of litter and wastes burned. Both experience a steep ascent in the time series between 2001 to 2002. Backyard burning experienced a sharp drop once the MSWDF was open. The littering trend was less steep after the opening as well.

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The assumptions made regarding the controlled dumps are seen in Graph 6.3. It shows how a similar type of landfill with the same capacity as that of the present ones are used once the old controlled dump close. It could be seen in this figure that Metro Manila would exhaust the use of three 60-hectare controlled dumps within 15 years in addition to open dumping, recycling, backyard burning and littering. The brief leveling off of the controlled dumps series at the beginning of the timeline depicts the limited amount of waste that can be disposed in controlled dump facilities in 2001 following the closure of the San Mateo landfill. A balance of the costs and allocation in the SWM budget is seen in Graph 6.5. Despite the increasing amount of funds that is received by the metropolis for SWM expenditures, the budget is more likely to become inadequate in the future. The rising costs of SWM are due to the increasing waste generation, as well as, the NIMBY effect that has caused the rise in SWM expenditures. The model estimates that at the present share of the SWM in the metropolitan budget, it may face a financial difficulty by 2005. Moreover, with decreasing capacity in landfills, landfilling costs per ton of garbage disposed becomes more expensive (see Graph 6.6). The influence of NIMBY on the rising costs of SWM is seen in Graph 6.7. NIMBY effect results indicate that landfilling costs would increase by a factor of 4.5 by 2015. 6.3.2 Scenario B Scenario B examines the effect of user fees and composting to the current SWM system in Metro Manila. Since these improvements are supposed to begin in 2004, the graphs still show the changes in the different streams/trends that are caused by the garbage crisis of 2000. It could be observed in Figure 6.2.8 that there are more obvious changes in the trends after 2004. Littering and composting streams take a large increase as the user fee policy is supposed to encourage these activities to avoid having to pay large SWM bills. The amount of collected wastes drops as 50% of the waste has already been diverted to composting and recycling. This leaves 50% for collection, assuming all residuals are collected, which is less than the amount of Scenario A’s 71.5%. It, however, picks up eventually as waste generation increases with increasing development. This does not reduce both litter and backyard burning to a negligible amount, thus the sharp drop in these trends. 6.3.3 Scenario C Scenario C examines two solutions added to the scenario B system. The first of which, increasing allocation for personal service expenditures, as seen in Graph 6.10, results to more productivity in terms of municipal services – street sweepings, river clean up and the like. In this graph, the variable ‘metro aides’ signify the factor to which municipal services increase after a certain amount in the total personnel services budget is reached. Each increase in this factor results to a dramatic rise in municipal services yield. 6.3.4 Scenario D This scenario examines the effect of putting up a sanitary landfill to substitute both the controlled and open dumps. It can be seen in Graph 6.13 that the open dumps reach capacity, and are closed, in the beginning of the year 2005 while the controlled dumps, in the first half of 2007.

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After these, the sanitary landfill takes over as the sole form of residual solid waste disposal facility. It is observable from the graph that with all the different solutions applied, composting, user fees, increased personnel services allocation and environmental education, the 200-hectare sanitary landfill will last up to 12 years, from 2007 to 2019. This is much shorter than what was initially expected as the assumption was based on JICA’s estimation that 100 hectares would accommodate about 10 years’ worth of refuse. The time range for the graphs in this scenario has been extended to show the progression of trends during the sanitary landfill’s lifetime. VII. Recommendations 7.1 Collection of User Fees SWM in Metro Manila is treated as a general service in that expenses are taken from taxes paid by the residents. With increasing waste generation and the scarcity of available lands for land filling, the LGUs & MMDA take on increasing costs. It seems that only the authorities incur the financial effects of the problem. Although increasing expenses for SWM may cut allocations in other sectors, it does not directly affect the generators or households themselves. Because of this, many households are not aware of the extent of the problem, as they do not share the financial burden. The collection of user fees will have two primary effects on the system (see Figure 6.6). It pays for the cost of SWM while at the same time reducing waste output of the generators. The collection of user fees would change SWM from being a general service to a utility. This directly involves the generators in the financial aspect of the service by contributing to the cost of SWM. User fees may be collected depending on the amount of waste that is put up by a household for collection. This curbs generation, as households would exert more effort into recycling and composting their wastes to save on household expenses. Considering the composition of wastes in Metro Manila (see Figure 6.1), there is a large potential for composting and recycling, thus a large amount may be diverted from the residual waste stream. Moreover, if amount of waste is measured in weight, composting rates would increase as kitchen wastes are heavy and will most likely be separated by households. Both JICA and the World Bank have indicated that one of the problems limiting the SWM sector in Metro Manila from delivering better service is the lack of funds that can be allocated for this (JICA/MMDA, 1999; WB, 2001). Different LGUs have varying capabilities and MMDA is dependent on allocations from the former and the national government. The user fees may be collected and used exclusively by the SWM sector, enabling them to expand their coverage and to deliver better services to its constituents. 7.2 Environmental Education Awareness of the effects of SWM to the general well being of society may affect the system in different ways. With awareness, the general public would know the perils of a failed SWM system and would take measures to protect themselves. Unfortunately, NIMBY resulted from this awareness. With the record of MMDA’s past landfills, the strong opposition of townspeople in almost all towns where they plan to build landfills is not astonishing.

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Environmental education should be aimed to make people aware but at the same time understand their role in the SWM system. Its goal should be to curb waste generation by promoting the value of environmental responsibility. This, however, is a big challenge as it entails a change in lifestyle. On the other hand, if SWM is added into the curricula in schools, it will inculcate the value of environmental responsibility in the youth. At the same time, if it were practiced in schools, offices and community centers, it could possibly, albeit slowly, be adopted into the community’s way of life. Currently, there are a number of NGOs in Metro Manila, such as Mother Earth, who have established training centers for establishing community-based SWM systems catering to community leaders and common people. It has actively pursued its role as an advocate for the environment by designing its approach in a manner that appeals personally to the community by making use of local culture, values and beliefs as themes for its activities. (Alcantara, 2003) 7.3 Taking the ‘barangay approach’ to SWM The establishment of community-based material recovery and composting facilities, such as that required in RA 9003 entails the participation of all actors involved in the SWM system. This would be next to impossible to do if the actors do not think it is personally worthwhile. Devising programs such as ‘cleanest barangay’ competitions would entice more people to get involved, as the relationships of people within a barangays are more intimate and personal. Currently, there are efforts by NGOs such as Linis Ganda but since these are mandated by law, these should be enforced by the LGUs themselves. In well-off barangays, there is less personal involvement among community members (Personal Observation). This is an opportunity wherein the informal participants of SWM, the scavengers, can be formally recognized and absorbed into the system. Based on the experience of the Linis Ganda community projects, the establishment of material recovery and composting facilities in barangays would open up employment opportunities. Their work as eco-aides, or managers of eco-facilities, facilitates their inclusion into society, not to mention, it enables them to earn a living in better and healthier environments. 7.4 Investing in SWM Personnel Allocation for SWM personnel services was 0.55% of the GRDP in 2002 (MMDA, 2002). As waste generation increases, so will the workload for SWM workers. As seen from the above analysis, personnel services is a worthwhile investment as it affects the system in numerous ways. Being a refuse collector or street sweeper is far from glamorous. In fact, these could be counted as the least desirable jobs not just in the Philippines, but also in many countries. Not only do these jobs entail exposure to extremely unpleasant environments but it also makes them, along with the scavengers, vulnerable to the health risks from a failed SWM system more than anybody else in the metropolis. The increase in personnel services allocation can be spent for causes that can improve the welfare of SWM personnel, as well as, the overall performance of the metropolis’ SWM services. SWM personnel services provision may be spent on better healthcare as well as increasing the number of employees to meet the increasing workload. Based on the large number of scavengers, there is a big pool of willing and able people to be found. Funds may also be invested in workshops and training seminars for SWM personnel to gain technical expertise. All these not only improve the overall performance of the SWM sector but also develop the potentials of SWM personnel, giving them a platform to improve their status in society.

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7.5 Use of Environmental Technology Existing solid waste disposal facilities in Metro Manila are far from satisfactory, judging from the criticisms from environmental watchdogs such as NGOs and the general reaction of Manileños as well as people from surrounding towns to garbage dumps. There is also an over reliance on landfills as a means of solid waste disposal. With further research, other technologies that are more environmentally reliant and economically viable could be found. Examples of such technology are those that are used in a modern sanitary landfill. Also, the SWM sector could benefit from the recovery and sale of methane from existing and future dumps and composting facilities. Since 45% of the waste stream is kitchen waste and 7% is garden waste, there is a large potential for this type of technology (MMDA b, 2003). Profits from the sale of methane to the energy sector can be used to augment SWM expenditure. Funds for research and investment for new and better technologies can always be requested from various aid agencies. In the past, there has been a quite a number of bodies that have offered assistance to address Metro Manila’s garbage dilemma. The ADB has been providing technical assistance for the implementation of RA 9003’s provisions in Metro Manila (ADB, 2002). The Global Environment Facility (GEF) had also been involved in assisting in the establishment of solid waste projects in 2001 (GAIA, 2001). JICA has also been involved in several projects, involving solid waste, with the MMDA. Furthermore, this is also an avenue where the private sector can increase involvement in the SWM sector. 7.6 Reviewing Institutional Responsibility in SWM There still remains to be a problem with the lack of a single body fully devoted to SWM issues. The RA 9003 tried to address this issue with the formation of the NSWMC. This however does not really address the problem as the members of the NSWMC are from different branches of the government. The focus, therefore, of these members will not be, solely, on SWM issues but also concerns that their respective departments face. For example, the DENR-EMB which acts as NSWMC’s secretariat is not only responsible for solid waste issues, as demanded by NSWMC. Among its other duties are air and water quality management, chemicals and hazardous waste monitoring and environmental impact assessments (EMB, 2003). Considering SWM affects different aspects of sustainability, involvement of the different branches of the government, as well as the private sector is not such a bad thing. Only, since there are different concerns for each of these bodies, responsibilities and extent of involvement of these participants must be clearly defined. The relationship between MMDA and the LGUs are quite unclear. RA 9003’s provision has made MMDA’s additional role dangerous territory that must be tread upon lightly because RA 7160 was not amended to accommodate the former’s provisions. Implementation or the lack thereof, is, probably, the biggest hindrance to achieving sustainable SWM. It is said that the SWM sector is plagued with anomalies and vested interests. An article from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) describes the different ways and levels wherein corruption exists in the SWM sector (PCIJ, 2001). The obsession on quick fix solutions by the current leading agencies in SWM is rooted from these vested interests. These LGUs, especially, aspire to ‘fix’ the

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SWM problem within their political terms, hence, long-term solutions, especially those that call for public participation, are not much considered. An ADB evaluation of the SWM sector describes it as “compounded by weak institutional capacity” hence the crisis (ADB, 2002). The World Bank, in the 2001 Philippine Environment Monitor, thinks that the lacks of incentives and financial and technical capacity, as well as, slackness in the enforcement of the law, particularly RA 9003, are challenges that the SWM sector in Metro Manila faces (WB, 2001). It is the lack of legitimacy of the authorities in SWM that hinders the effective implementation of the law. This means that before anything else, environmental responsibility must be learned and exhibited by the leaders before this is demanded from the public. VIII. Conclusion SWM in Metro Manila is currently undergoing a transformation, mainly due to the implementation of RA 9003. Although implementation has been quite slack, there is a growing awareness among the cities’ denizens and the townspeople from surrounding area. This awareness has inspired the growth of an organized group of NGOs devoted to the cause of solid waste management. They act as catalysts to SWM legislation and are currently the main actors responsible for recycling efforts in the region. They have acted as watchdogs that have ardently been fighting for reforms that have been held back by corruption in the SWM sector. Unfortunately, this same awareness had also stimulated the further growth of the society’s NIMBYism, which had been responsible for the premature closure of the SMWDF and the garbage crisis of 2001. For years, it seems, the LGUs and MMDA have focused only on the tip of the iceberg that is the SWM system. It was only during the crisis that they have seen the enormity of the problem and the ripples that it had created in the system. Even then, the authorities remain obsessed with quick fixes such as landfills and incinerators. By looking at SWM as a system, it is obvious that the strongest factors influencing the growth in waste generation are the increasing per capita generation as well as the growth in population. With the rapid growth of the economy, and changing urban lifestyle, the SWM sector will not stand to sustain itself. Solutions must, therefore, be concentrated on these factors rather than devoting most of the SWM budget to back end solutions. The costs of SWM are escalating considering the resistance to landfills by the general public and the impacts to society, the environment and the economy. The collection of user fees is not a long term solution to curb waste generation but more of a tool to jumpstart the process while environmental education gradually works on inculcating values that would effect a more permanent change. Considering the effect of RA 9003 on an enormous amount of people who depend on garbage as a source of livelihood, the building of material recovery and composting facilities in each barangay is a venue where these people can be employed and included formally into society. By investing in SWM personnel, these people can benefit from opportunities to gain technical skills and expertise while at the same time improving the quality of SWM services. The immensity of the SWM system and the responsibilities that it entails is overwhelming. The government, however, cannot bear the brunt of the problems, as society has been a willing and active participant in solid waste generation. Implementation of reforms must, therefore, be a

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concerted effort of the government, the public and the private sector. This, however, is a daunting task as it entails a change in values and lifestyles of the public. It demands a strong body, unwaged by corruption, to rouse participation and encourage involvement in the implementation of reforms.12” Synthesis: With those cited literatures and study, they have similarities from one another to the point that they were focusing on the statute implemented (RA 9003) responsible for the administration and monitoring for the disposal, processing of solid waste management in Metro Manila where the City Of Quezon belong to and how environment being protected by the existing statute.

Emphasis: The relevance of this chapter to the current study is that the ideas, thoughts, facts and data, and results could be relay on the success of our study that focuses on whether waste management could have its relevance when it comes to health and socio-economic level of the people of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City.

12

A Systems Approach on Solid Waste Management in Metro Manila, Philippines Rhea Abigail Navarro, LUMES 2002/2003

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CHAPTER III

THE RESEARCH FRAMEWORK

Introduction:

Types of Solid Waste: Solid waste can be classified into different types depending on their source:

Municipal Solid Waste – Household waste, construction and demolition debris, sanitation residue, and waste from streets are considered as municipal solid waste. This waste is generated mainly from residential and commercial complexes.

Hazardous Waste – Waste that may contain toxic substances is referred as hazardous waste. Such waste is primarily generated by industries (such as, metal, chemical, paper, pesticide, dye, refining, and rubber goods industries), hospitals and households.

Biomedical Waste – Waste generated during the diagnosis, treatment, or immunization of human beings or animals or in research activities in these fields is referred as biomedical waste. It may include wastes like sharps, soiled waste, disposables, anatomical waste, cultures, discarded medicines, chemical wastes, etc. This waste is highly infectious and can be a serious threat to human health if not managed in a scientific manner. It has been estimated that of the 4 kg of waste generated in a hospital at least 1 kg could be infectious.

Health Impacts of Solid Waste

With increase in the population and the rising demand for food and other essentials, there has been a rise in the amount of waste being generated daily by each household. This waste is ultimately thrown into municipal waste collection centres from where it is collected by the area municipalities to be further disposed into the landfills and dumps. However, either due to resource crunch or inefficient infrastructure, not all of this waste gets collected and transported to the final dumpsites. If at this stage the management and disposal is improperly done, it can cause serious impacts on health and problems to the surrounding environment. Waste that is not properly managed, especially excreta and other liquid and solid waste from households and the community, are a serious health hazard and lead to the spread of infectious diseases. Unattended waste lying around attracts flies, rats, and other creatures that in turn spread disease. Normally it is the wet waste that decomposes and releases a bad odour. This leads to unhygienic conditions and thereby to a rise in the health problems. The plague outbreak in Surat is good example. The group at risk from the unscientific disposal of solid waste include – the population in areas where there is no proper waste disposal method, especially the pre-school children; waste workers; and workers in facilities producing toxic and infectious material. Other high-risk group includes population living close to a waste dump and those whose water supply gets contaminated either due to waste dumping or leakage from landfill sites. Uncollected solid waste also increases risk of injury and infection.

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Environmental Issues The decomposition of waste into constituent chemicals is a common source of local environmental pollution. This problem is especially acute in developing nations. Very few existing landfills in the world’s poorest countries would meet environmental standards accepted in industrialized nations, and with limited budgets there are likely to be few sites rigorously evaluated prior to use in the future. The problem is again compounded by the issues associated with rapid urbanization. As land becomes scarce, human settlements encroach upon landfill space, and local governments in some cases encourage new development directly on top of operating or recently closed landfills. A major environmental concern is gas release by decomposing garbage. Methane is a by-product of the anaerobic respiration of bacteria, and these bacteria thrive in landfills with high amounts of moisture. Methane concentrations can reach up to 50% of the composition of landfill gas at maximum anaerobic decomposition (Cointreau-Levine, 1997). In well designed and well-suited landfills there is the potential for methane recovery; few landfills in the developing world are designed to capture and make use of methane; in all of Latin America and the Caribbean, only three such landfills were in operation, all in Chile (Thomas-Hope, 1998). Generally the required capital for methane recovery installations is lacking, and the low price of commercially produced gas does not make methane recovery an economically viable enterprise. In the absence of proper methane venting and/or flaring, the gas seeps into porous soil surrounding the waste and eventually migrates into basements and homes, posing an explosion risk. Carbon dioxide is a second predominant gas emitted by landfills; although less reactive, buildup in nearby homes could be a cause of asphyxiation. A second problem with these gasses is their contribution to the enhanced greenhouse gas effect and climate change. Both gases are major constituents of the world‟s problem GHGs; however while carbon dioxide is readily absorbed for use in photosynthesis; methane is less easily broken down, and is considered 20 times more potent as a GHG (Johannessen, 1999). Hoornweg et al (1999) report that for every metric ton of unsorted municipal solid waste (containing 0.3 Mt carbon), 0.2 Mt are converted to landfill gasses. Of this gas, carbon dioxide and methane each comprise 0.09 Mt. Since it is believed that landfill gasses supply 50% of human-caused methane emissions and 2-4% of all worldwide greenhouse gasses (Johannessen 1999), this is clearly an area of concern in global environmental issues. Liquid leachate management varies throughout the landfills of the developing world. Leachate poses a threat to local surface and ground water systems. The use of dense clay deposits at the bottom of waste pits, coupled with plastic sheeting-type liners to prevent infiltration into the surrounding soil, is generally regarded as the optimum strategy to contain excess liquid. In this way, waste is encouraged to evaporate rather than infiltrate. The need for such measures depends largely on climatic conditions, as arid areas with high rates of evapo-transpiration will not have nearly the potential for leachate problems as areas with high rainfall or snowmelt. Current practices in the developing world range from absolutely no leachate management (unofficial dumps or those operating continuously for years without „sanitary‟ specifications) to discharge into municipal sewer and sewage systems, direct discharge into surface water systems (rivers), multi-pond aeration and settlement systems, chemical treatment facilities, and recirculation systems (Johannessen, 1999).

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Conceptual Framework:

Solid Waste Management – Conceptual Basis Broadly, the material flow stream of waste from generation to ultimate disposal comprises the following:

Generation

Collection / Transportation

Processing

Disposal Accordingly, SWM encompasses the full range of activities for these streams, from the generation of used materials to their disposal. Resource recovery includes all activities of waste segregation, collection and processing which are carried out taking into consideration the economic viability of the material. Reuse and recycling provide an opportunity to capture some of the values from the waste. Of these two techniques, reuse is a simpler process involving reutilization of material in its end-use form without the necessity of reprocessing. Recycling, on the other hand, involves processing waste through remanufacture and conversion of parts in order to recover an original raw matter (Thomas-Hope, 1998; Beede and Bloom, 1995; Beukering, 1994). The collection of waste and its recovery from different waste generating points is carried out by many agents, formal and informal, which represent a variety of organizational structures and relationships (Cointreau, 1987). In most developing countries, including India, urban SWM comes under the auspices of the local municipal bodies who are the main formal stakeholders responsible for the collection, removal and disposal of garbage from public places and for the maintenance of dumping grounds. Sometimes the private formal sector, such as private contractors and small and large reprocessing enterprises, as well as the non-government and community based organizations, assist the municipal authorities in collecting, treating and disposing waste. Alongside the formal sector, in developing countries resource recovery and recycling activities are also marked by the involvement of the informal sector. This comprises waste pickers, itinerant waste buyers and middlemen such as junk dealers and wholesalers. This informal sector mostly refers to those employers which are classified as “own account” workers, e.g., unpaid family workers and those who collect and treat mostly unregistered waste material (World Bank, 1995).

Integrated Solid Waste Management It was the environmental movement in the late 1960s which formally presented integrated SWM as a guiding principle for managing societies‟ refuses”. Since this was also a period of economic prosperity in most industrialized countries, waste managers were not constrained by narrow budgets. Thus, until the economic recessions of the early-1980s the new paradigm of integrated SWM was widely implemented in industrialized countries (Schall, 1995). Integrated SWM is a very broad concept. Figure 1 shows the overall framework, although it is not intended to be an exhaustive list of categories. Essentially integrated SWM implies that decisions on waste handling should take into account economic, environmental, social and institutional dimensions. Economic aspects may include the costs and benefits

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of implementation, the available municipal budgets for waste management, and the spin-off effects for other sectors in the economy in terms of investments. The environmental dimension may consist of local problems (i.e., increased risk of epidemics and groundwater pollution), regional problems (i.e., resource depletion and acid rain), and global problems (i.e., global warming and ozone depletion). Social aspects include employment effects for both the formal and the informal sector, impact on human health and ethical issues such as the use child labour. Finally, the institutional dimension of integrated SWM aims to develop a system which effectively involves the main stakeholders. The integrative aspect lies in the trade-off between these four dimensions. For example, in certain situations, although recycling may be preferred from an environmental perspective, the economic costs involved or the presence of institutional complications may prevent waste recycling from being promoted and implemented in integrated SWM. This is the case, for example, with recycling polyethylene bags in industrialized countries, where the environmental benefits are limited when weighed against the high labour costs and the absence of sufficient infrastructure. Obviously, trading-off between these four dimensions is a rather complex exercise. The actual integration can take place at various levels (Lardinios and Klundert, 1997): (Source: Schall, 1995)

Figure 3. Framework for analyzing the concept of Integrated SWM

1. The use of a range of different collection and treatment options. These include prevention, recycling, energy recovery and sound landfilling of solid waste. 2. The involvement and participation of all the stakeholders. These may include waste processors such as formal and informal recyclers, waste generators such as households, industry and agriculture, and government institutions such as waste managers and urban planners.

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3. The interactions between the waste system and other relevant systems such as industry. For example, product design at the industry level can have a significant impact on the „recyclability‟ of the product after consumption. It is difficult to include all these aspects at the same time, since the factors affecting solid waste management are constantly changing For example, income and population growth contribute significantly to the amount of waste which has to be managed. Similarly, differences in educational background and environmental awareness results in varying attitudes of waste generators. Finally, technological progress in the field of waste management is rapid, so certain technologies may outdate more rapidly. These problems are more severe in developing countries where limited municipal budgets for waste management exacerbate the difficulties of integration. As a result, policies tend to focus mainly on the waste hierarchy.

The Waste Hierarchy The waste hierarchy is accepted as a key element in integrated SWM. The hierarchy is based on environmental principles which propose that waste should be handled by different methods according to its characteristics, i.e. a certain amount should be prevented either by reducing the content of waste or by reusing the waste; another share of the waste stream should be converted into secondary raw materials; some parts can be composted or used as source of energy, and the remainder may be landfilled (Figure 2). Reality does not adhere to this environmentally based sequence. Indeed, in developing countries, a large quantity of waste is dumped in an uncontrolled manner, or worse, burned in the open air. Obviously, these options do not belong to the waste hierarchy because of their unacceptable high levels of environmental damage. These latter two options are therefore added in the shaded area. Although this ranking of waste management options provides policy makers with an effective base, integrated SWM goes beyond the waste hierarchy. It is generally known that the hierarchy has to be applied in a flexible way and it is only intended as a general guideline to achieve the best environmental solution in the long term. Still, the hierarchy has always been subject to fierce criticism for various reasons. First, although the ranking may indeed be correct in terms of environmental pressure for certain materials, this is not the case for all materials or products. For instance, it may be better to recycle an old refrigerator rather than reuse it because its inefficient energy consumption creates more environmental damage than the recycling related burdens. Second, the hierarchy only refers to environmental effects and not to economic or social criteria. Obviously, these aspects cannot be ignored.

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Figure 4. The Waste Hierarchy

Therefore, many believe that the options should not be ranked in a particular order but should be considered as a “menu” of alternatives. “It is not a question of good and bad waste management options or technologies. Rather, each option was equally appropriate under the right set of conditions addressing the right set of waste stream components” (Schall, 1995).

Differences between SWM in High and Low-income Countries Experiences and lessons can be drawn from the different management measures adapted across the world – based on three perspectives: waste generation, collection and disposal, and recovery and recycling.

Waste Generation On a global level, approximately two-thirds of a kilogram of waste per person per day is generated. Yet, the difference between high and low income countries is considerable, especially in terms of composition. As economic prosperity increases, the amount of solid waste produced consists mostly of luxury waste such as paper, cardboard, plastic and heavier organic materials. On the other hand, waste densities and moisture contents are much higher in developing countries. In addition, the hazardous content is quite high in developing countries since the regulatory and enforcement systems to control such waste disposal are usually non-existent or not operating. This is a particular problem with waste from hospitals located within the city area, which is often found mixed with municipal waste in open dumps and landfills (Indapurkar, 1996). These differences mean that waste management systems in each region require distinct approaches. For example, as the waste content in developing countries is highly organic and susceptible to rapid decay, the emphasis of the SWM process in these countries should be on the collection process. Studies have shown that expensive collection trucks and compactors developed and used in

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industrialized countries are difficult to operate and maintain, and are unsuitable for narrow lanes, the high traffic density and the nature of waste in developing countries.

Waste Collection and Disposal The level of service for waste collection also varies markedly. In most industrialized countries services have expanded to the extent that over 90 per cent of the population (and 100 per cent of the urban population) have access to waste collection. This is not the case in developing countries (UNEP, 1991). The failure to provide adequate collection services poses a serious threat to human health in many developing countries (WHO, 1992). Yet, it should be noted that municipal services in developing countries are handicapped by limited finances and an ever-increasing demand on urban services. In many developed countries, burial in controlled landfills continues to be the most prevalent means of disposing of solid waste including hazardous waste - about 70 per cent of urban solid waste is disposed off in this way in the United States and most European countries. Incineration and recycling also play a key role in the management of urban and industrial waste. It is worth noting that these options are particularly popular in highly densely populated countries such as Japan and the Netherlands. In contrast, in developing countries the prevalent methods of solid waste disposal is through uncontrolled dumping or burning on open ground or city streets (UNEP, 1994; Cointreau-Levine, 1997). This often results in more pollution and loss of salvageable economic value. (Bartone, 2000; UNEP, 1994; Beede and Bloom, 1995).

Waste Recovery and Recycling In recent years there has been a surge of interest in waste recovery and recycling in both the developing and developed world. Among the industrialized countries recycling activities are on the increase, primarily due to the political pressure of public opposition to disposal sites, and the economic pressure of the high cost of waste disposal attributable to land shortage, increasing costs of sanitary landfills, the unwillingness on the public’s part to have landfills located in “their backyards”, and stringent regulatory standards of waste disposal (Cointreau and de Kadt, 1991; UNEP, 1994). In developing countries, on the other hand, which are still grappling with the basic task of collecting garbage, recycling of waste is carried out in direct response to industrial demand for materials to use as raw materials; i.e., what is being recycled has some commercial sale value (Cointreau and de Kadt, 1991). An important feature of waste recovery and recycling in low income, developing countries is the involvement of the informal sector. Studies reveal that this sector is mainly engaged in the recovery and re-sale of most of the recyclables and is highly labour intensive. But notwithstanding their significant contribution to waste recovery and recycling process, their role in urban waste management is not recognized and their earnings continue to be meager (Cointreau and de Kadt, 1991). Waste recovery and recycling processes in poorer developing countries are based on market considerations, in the sense that it helps to create economic value out of waste. In the resource poor developing countries, this has a positive impact on the economy. There is also the added benefit of providing a source of livelihood to many economically deprived persons who would otherwise be unemployed.

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Strategic Aspects of Solid Waste Management To achieve sustainable and effective waste management, development strategies must go beyond purely technical considerations to formulate specific objectives and implement appropriate measures with regard to political, institutional, social, financial, economic and technical aspects of MSWM. While political aspects deal with the formulation of goals and priorities, determination of roles and jurisdiction, and the legal and regulation framework, the institutional aspects are concerned with the distribution of functions and responsibilities. The social aspects of MSWM include the patterns of waste generation and handling of households and other users; the financial aspects of MSWM deal with budgeting and cost accounting, capital investment, cost recovery and cost reduction issues; the economic aspects are concerned with the impact of services on economic activities, cost-effectiveness of MSWM systems, macro-economic dimensions of resource use and conservation; and finally the technical aspects are concerned with the planning and implementation and maintenance of collection and transfer systems, waste recovery, final disposal and management of hazardous waste. The following figure provides an overview of the conceptual framework for MSWM involving all these aspects.13

13

The conceptual framework and its figures presented in this chapter was based from the dissemination paper of Zareena Begum about Solid Waste Management relevant to the above mentioned Review of Related Literature of this Study.

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Figure 5: Overview of the Conceptual Framework of MSWM

Definition of Terms

The following words are terms which are operational in the study:

1. Assessment – the classification of someone or something with respect to its worth; the act of

judging a person or situation or event.

2. Barangay – the smallest political unit in the Philippines with a total number of more than 100

families.

3. Industrialization – the development of industry on an extensive scale.

4. Pollution – undesirable state of the natural environment being contaminated with harmful

substances as a consequence of human activities.

5. Sanitation – the state of being clean and conducive to health.

6. Socio-economic class – people having the same social or economic status.

7. Socio-economic status – indicating factor of where a certain person belongs on a specific social

or economic class.

8. Solid waste management - encompasses the full range of activities for these streams, from the

generation of used materials to their disposal.14

9. Urbanization – the social process whereby cities grow and societies more urban.

10. Waste management - is the collection, transport, processing or disposal, managing and

monitoring of waste materials.15

14

Ibid. Conceptual Framework of CHAPTER III of this study. 15

Ibid. ABSTRACT of this study. Sentence 6, Paragraph 2.

[31]

CHAPTER IV

METHODOLOGY

This chapter mainly presents the research methodology and sources of data which are used in

conducting the study. It also includes different data treatments on secondary data available to be

employed in this paper.

There is a need to make the available data and records organized to develop a process for

review of relevant studies conducted to obtain necessary information to make judgments with respect

to the indicators as prescribed by the studies mentioned.

Research Design

The researchers would use the qualitative type of research, using the secondary data sources

available. In gathering data available for the independent variable, the study will simply collect reports

from the various relevant institutions regarding the list of indicators provided above. Most are already

available online in different databases and websites.

The Research Design taken out from a secondary source of data:

The Research Design

The survey was not a census survey. Rather, a sampling method was employed. In other words,

only a sample was surveyed from the total population.

From a total population of 40,000 to 60,000 households in the entire barangay, a sample size of 382

households was obtained. Such sample size corresponds to a confidence level of 95% and a confidence

interval of 5%16

16 The Confidence Interval is the plus-or-minus figure usually reported in newspaper or television opinion poll

results. For example, if you use a confidence interval of 4 and 47% percent of your sample picks an answer, you can

be "sure" that if you had asked the question of the entire relevant population between 43% (47-4) and 51% (47+4)

would have picked that answer.

The Confidence Level on the other hand tells you how sure you can be. It is expressed as a percentage and

represents how often the true percentage of the population who would pick an answer lies within the confidence

interval. The 95% confidence level means you can be 95% certain; the 99% confidence level means you can be

99% certain. Most researchers use the 95% confidence level.

When you put the two together, you can say that you are 95% sure that the true percentage of the population is

between 43% and 51%.

[32]

Because of the sheer population size of the barangay, it was decided after considering available

resources and time constraints to distribute the sample through 12 of the 24 puroks or half of the total

number of puroks. The purok unit was chosen for convenience because that’s how the barangay

chairman administratively divided the barangay and each purok has a leader who may guide the

enumerators. The puroks where chosen randomly in a lottery witnessed by all the 24 purok leaders. In

each purok, 3 streets were further chosen randomly by the concerned purok leader. Thus a total of 36

streets evenly distributed in 12 puroks were chosen. The sample size was then divided among the 36

puroks which resulted in having 10 to 11 respondents per street.17

Study Area

The locus of the study would be a barangay community. The researchers used the 2007 Survey

of John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI) et.al.18 as a reference wherein the areas

study is located in Brgy. Payatas, Quezon City, Philippines. The data in the study would be able to

determine the different communication tools that focused on health and socio-economic level in that

area provide to the people in the barangay in relevance to waste management of the locality.

17

Research Design of 2007 Baseline Socio-Economic Survey of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City. 18

A paper survey made by John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI) in partnership with Philippine Support Services Agencies Inc. determining the baseline socioeconomic level of the residence of Barangay, Payatas, Quezon City.

[33]

CHAPTER V

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

1. Does poor waste management system could affect the economic activities and growth of

Barangay Payatas, Quezon City?

Environmental Management

There are only two components to this indicator. The figure in terms of the first

component (proper disposal of solid waste) is quite good with almost all (97.5%) households reporting

that their garbage is being collected regularly by garbage trucks. However, most families are wanting in

the second component with only a third (34.1%) of families saying that the drainage system in their

neighborhood is adequate.

Proper Solid Waste Disposal

Almost all (94.5%) say that garbage is being collected by garbage trucks

Table 1. Mode of Disposing Solid Waste

Frequency Percent

Collected by a

Truck

361 94.5

Collected by a

push cart

4 1

Incineration 10 2.6

Disposal on

Vacant Area

1 0.3

Segregation 1 0.3

Others 5 1.3

Total 382 100

[34]

Additionally, majority say that it is collected once a week.

Table 2. Frequency of Collection Solid Waste

Frequency Percent

Everyday 59 15.4

Every 1 week 205 53.7

Every 2 weeks 98 25.7

Later than 2 wks 3 0.8

88 1 0.3

99 16 4.2

Total 382 100

A little over half say that they do not segregate nor not burn their garbage.

Table 3. Compliance with Environmental Laws

Frequency Percent

Segregation 73 19.1

Not Incinerated 98 25.7

None of the Above 211 55.2

Total 382 100

[35]

Drainage System

Only 9.2% have “Adequate” drainage systems which is defined as a covered system of covered

canal which does not overflow when it rains. For obvious reasons, having adequate drainage systems is

important to the health of the residents.

Table 4. Distribution According to the Type of Canal and Sufficiency During Rainy Days

Classification of Canal

Is it sufficient especially during Rainy Season?

Yes No 99.00 Total

Open Canal 223 90 313

58.4% 23.6% 81.9%

Covered Canal 35 10 45

9.2% 2.6% 11.8%

Others 2 1 3

.5% .3% .8%

99.00 1 1 19 21

.3% .3% 5.0% 5.5%

Total 102 19 382

68.3% 26.7% 5.0% 100.0%

[36]

Livelihood

Among the 3 institutions, it is the barangay that they know best as having a livelihood program.

Table 5. Knowledge of Availability of Livelihood Projects by Provider

BARANGAY CITY NGO

Frequency Percent Frequency Percent Frequency Percent

Those who have 162 42.4 108 28.3 111 29.1

Those who haven’t 190 49.7 226 59.2 225 58.9

Didn’t know nothing 30 7.9 48 12.6 46 12

Total 382 100 382 100 382 100

Health

Access to health services is also not sufficient because while most have access to nearby health

centers (87.7%), only less than one-third (32.19%) of those who needed medicine for common sickness

are able to get medicine in sufficient quantity. The most common services given are medical services

followed by dental and maternal care services. Some are also lying-in clinics.

Table 6. Availability of Nearby Health Centers

Health Center? Frequency Percent

Yes 335 87.7

None 45 11.8

Not aware 2 0.5

Total 382 100

[37]

Table 7. Availability of Health Services by Type of Service

MEDICAL DENTAL LYING IN MATERNAL

CARE

f % f % f % F %

There is 287 75.1 151 39.5 38 9.9 71 18.6

There’s none 94 24.6 230 60.2 343 89.8 310 81.2

No reply 1 0.3 1 0.3 1 0.3 1 0.3

Total 382 100 382 100 382 100 382 100

Only 52.1% obtained medicine for common sicknesses from the Brgy. health center

when they needed it. Of these, only 61.8% obtained sufficient quantity.

Table 8. Availability of Medicine

Had availed medicine for a

specific illness when it was

needed?

Frequency Percent

Yes 199 52.1

No 178 46.6

Didn’t know 4 1.0

88.00 1 .3

Total 382 100.0

[38]

Table 9. Sufficiency of Quantity of Medicine Obtained

Was the quantity of the medicine obtained sufficiently

enough?

Sufficient

123

61.8%

Insufficient

73

36.7%

Didn’t know

3

1.5%

Total

199

100.0%

The most common sicknesses are coughing, colds and fever.

Table 10. Most Common Ilnesses

# of times

mentioned

Cough 272

Colds 255

Fever 250

Flu 39

Asthma 19

Diarrhea 13

High Blood 11

Headache 11

[39]

Of the households who have children who are 6 years old and below, 4.7% have members who

are underweight.

Table 11. Households With 0-6 Year Old Children Who Are Underweight

Are there 0-6 yrs

of age which

were

underweight?

Frequency Percent

Yes 18 4.7

None 206 53.9

99.00 158 41.4

Total 382 100.0

Moreover, 5% of HHs have children who died before they are 6 years old

And 2.9% of HHs have children who died before they are 12 months old. No one died from

pregnancy-related or birthgiving-related causes.

Membership in Social Security Schemes

Much leaves to be desired in the percentage of individuals 18 years old and above in

terms of membership in social security schemes with only a third (35.6%) being members of SSS, a

measly 6.7 percent and 13.6 percent in Pag-ibig and Philhealth, respectively. Almost none are GSIS

members. Social security schemes are meant to provide a cushion to households in times of

emergency and crises.

The low figure for PhilHealth is particularly disconcerting considering that urban poor

households are prone to health hazards that are likely to frustrate any attempt to get out of their

present socio-economic situation. The low membership figures are also disconcerting because the

government has been touting the high membership rate in the said program as one of its

achievements and yet the case of Nagkaisang Nayon shows a different picture. Something needs to

be done to increase the membership.

It is noteworthy that there is a significant percentage of individual membership in “any

financing system” which includes microfinance and other forms of security. It seems to indicate that

people, in fact, are willing to join social security schemes that are open to them and that there might

be a need or a demand for other forms of security schemes aside from the usual government-

initiated ones.

[40]

Table 12. Membership in Social Security Schemes (18 and above)

Frequency Percent

Pag-ibig 72 6.7

SSS 381 35.6

GSIS 16 1.5

Coop 5 0.5

Any Financing System 437 40.8

Philhealth 146 13.6

Over half of those considered as part of the labor force (15 to 65 years old) are not working.

Significantly, one-fifth (20.0%) are self-employed.

Table 13. Employment Status of Household Members Who Are 15 to 65 Years Old

Frequency Percent

Not working 616 51.9

Employed Regular

(permanent)

140 11.8

Contractual 175 14.8

Self-employed 237 20

Retired 15 1.3

Homemaker 2 0.2

Unemployed because

disabled

1 0.1

Total 1186 100

[41]

Compared to the national figures, labor force participation in Payatas is very low since only a little more

than half of those who should be working are actually working.

Individual Monthly Income

The average individual monthly income among those who are in the labor force in Payatas is

only P 2,602.9680. This is more than a thousand pesos lower than the average for Nagkaisang Nayon

which is P 3,695.3240.

Table 14. Individual Monthly Income (15-65 Years Old)

N Minimum Maximum Mean

Monthly Income

Including NW

1186 0.00 32,000.00 2,602.9680

Educational Attainment

The educational attainment of those in the working age population is quite low with only 5.8%

having college degree and only 32.4% finishing high school. This confirms what most studies have

shown. Educational attainment is crucial for this population because obviously it will determine in large

part the kind of work they will have and consequently the income they will get. Most employers require

at least a high school education.

Table 15. Educational Attainment (15-65 Years Old.)

Frequency Percent

None 6 .5

Elementary 103 8.7

Elementary graduate 132 11.1

High School level 287 24.2

High School graduate 384 32.4

College level 157 13.2

[42]

College graduate 69 5.8

Vocational level 10 .8

Vocational graduate 37 3.1

Others 1 .1

Total 1186 100.0

Educational Attainment and Income

As noted earlier, educational attainment affects individual income. The study confirms what

many of us know: that indeed the higher the educational attainment, the higher the income. Thus,

those with college degrees have the highest average income of P4365.7971. This is more than twice

that of the education level category with the lowest income.

However, the study also reveals something else - having vocational skills contribute to the level

of income as shown by the fact that those who graduated from vocational courses rank second after

college graduates in terms of average income. They are even higher than those with some college

education.

The policy implication seems to be that vocational courses which are relatively cheaper than

going to college should be made available as a cheap but effective intervention in raising incomes.

Table 16. Educational Attainment and Income (5-65 Years Old)

Educational attainment Monthly Income

None 800.0000 (6)

Elementary 2461.1650 (103)

Elementary graduate 2484.6970 (132)

High School level 1731.5331 (287)

High School graduate 2761.4323 (384)

College level 3114.2675 (157)

College graduate 4365.7971 (69)

[43]

Vocational level 2410.0000 (10)

Vocational graduate 3492.4324 (37)

Others 0.0000 (1)

Total 2602.9680 (1186)

2. Does waste management affect the living condition of the residence of Barangay Payatas,

Quezon City?

Living Conditions

The seven indicators for which data was gathered is based on the Millennium Development

Goals, Target 11 Indicators which was initially used in Holy Spirit and Baesa. This was intended to make

possible a common framework for analysis of survey data. Generally, the data shows that much needs to

be done in Payatas in most of the components.

1. Access to Water

There are three components to this indicator – affordability , quality and physical accessibility

which is used a proxy for the time and effort spent in getting water.

Affordability

In terms of affordability - which is defined as having access to water that cost less than 10

percent of their monthly income – about three-fourths of households (75.7%) have adequate access to

affordable water. And on the average, water expense eats up only 6.6% of household income. On the

other hand 18.3% reported paying more than 10 percent of their income for water and are therefore

inadequate. This latter figure is higher than in Nagkaisang Nayon. Thus, relatively higher water cost

seems to be a problem in Payatas.

Table 17. Distribution of Households According to Percentage of Income Spent on Water

Frequency Percent

Paying less than 10

percent of Income

289 75.7

Paying more than 10

percent of Income

70 18.3

[44]

Total 359 94.0

Missing 23 6.0

Quality

In terms of quality, 96.8% have access to water that is tasteless, clear and odorless. In other

words, clean water. Thus most households are adequate in terms of this component as well.

Table 18. Distribution of Households According to Clarity, Smell and Taste of Water

Has Taste?

Has an Odor?

It has It hasn’t Total

It has

Clear

Yes 1 1 2

16.7% 16.7% 33.3%

No 3 1 4

50.0% 16.7% 66.7%

Total 4 2 6

66.7% 33.3% 100.0%

It hasn’t

Clear

Yes 1 364 365

.3% 96.8% 97.1%

No 1 10 11

.3% 2.7% 2.9%

Total 2 374 376

.5% 99.5% 100.0%

[45]

Effort and Time

However, as to effort and time, only about a third (38.7%) have their own water

connections from MWSS which is considered as the cheapest, most accessible and safest source

of water. So the third component is inadequate for most households. The second highest

percentage of households gets water by buying from neighbors. Of course such system will tend

to be more expensive and tend to take more time and effort.

Table 19. Distribution of Households According to Type of Water Connection

Frequency Percent

MWSS-Own 148 38.7

MWSS-Shared 57 14.9

deepwell-piped to dwelling 1 .3

deepwell-de bomba 1 .3

Mineral 26 6.8

Bought to a neighborhood 115 30.1

Tanker 25 6.5

Deep well 5 1.3

Ration 4 1.0

2. Access to Sanitation

This indicator has two components. For the first component is access to private sanitary toilet

that is either a flush or pour-flush toilet and second component is access to a sewerage system (private

all-concrete septic tank that is shared with at most only one other household).

Toilet

Three hundred fifty eight (358) or 93.7% have “Adequate” access to toilets. The figure of 358 is

derived by adding 339 who have their own pour-flush toilet and the 10 who have their own flush

toilets and the 9 who share their pour-flush toilet with only one other family and thus still considered

adequate.

[46]

Table 20. Distribution of Households According to Type of and Exclusivity of the Use of Toilet

Owner? TOILET

flush Poured by

dipper

bored hole

latrine

pit latrine Total

Self-owned

10 339 1 2 352

2.8% 96.3% .3% .6% 100.0%

Community 3 3

100.0% 100.0%

Secondhand

User

HOW

MANY?

2.00

9 9

39.1% 39.1%

More than 2 13 13

56.4% 56.4%

Sewerage System

However, the figure is much lower for the second component with only 64.7% having their own

private all-concrete septic tank.19

Table 21. Distribution of Households According to Type of Septic Tank

KLASE Total

all concrete semi-concrete Others 99.00

HAVE SOMEONE

SHARED WITH?

Self-owned 285 54 5 344

74.6% 14.1% 1.3% 90.1%

Yes, I have. 23 4 1 28

19

Taken as secondary data of this study from the REVIEW AND RESULTS of the survey of JJCICSI’s 2007 Baseline Socio-Economic Level of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City.

[47]

6.0% 1.0% .3% 7.3%

88.00 2 1 3

.5% .3% .8%

99.00 7 7

1.8% 1.8%

Total 310 59 6 7 382

81.2% 15.4% 1.6% 1.8% 100.0%

[48]

CHAPTER VI

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary and Conclusion:

Obviously, the problem in Payatas is complex. A combination of interventions on the community

level (organizing/capacity building, maintaining peace, provision of physical infrastructures) and

interventions on the household level (increasing incomes, provision of utilities and basic services, etc)

are needed. Also, long-term as well as short-term solutions are needed.

Although, the flow of the recommendations that follow later are largely patterned after the

layout of the questionnaire or survey instrument, those recommendations would invariably fall under

one of these interventions that should be prioritized: a. income-raising (through enterprises), b. direct

service provision (community infrastructure) such as improved water systems, sanitation, drainage and

solid waste management not only help remove the burden of health problems but also reduce the time

needed for domestic task, disaster management and c. alternative social security schemes. Those

marked with are considered top priority.

Recommendations:

So here are the specific recommendations:

Increase Membership in Social Security Schemes

Membership in social security schemes is very low even for government-initiated PhilHealth which is

supposed to be the cheapest and most accessible health insurance scheme available. It is important that

urban poor families be enrolled considering that they are prone to health hazards that are one of the

more direct contributors to the vicious cycle of poverty.

It is noteworthy that there is a significant percentage of individual membership in “any financing

system” which includes microfinance and other forms of security. It seems to indicate that people, in

fact, are willing to join social security schemes that are open to them and that there might be a need or

a demand for other forms of security schemes aside from the usual government-initiated ones.

Increase Employment and Livelihood Opportunities

A big percentage of the working age population is not working. Thus employment opportunities

must be increased. In fact, in the residents’ ranking of priorities, “livelihood” comes second after “land

and housing.”

There is indeed a need to stimulate the establishment of viable income-generating enterprises

through identification of opportunities, skills development and access to credit.

[49]

It is important to increase the employment rate to also increase the household income

considering that the average annual household income for Payatas is almost less than half of the

average for NCR 2 the statistical division used by the NSO where Quezon City belongs.

Of course, increasing income will allow households to address their other basic needs as well

such as food (and thereby lessening the incidence of hunger) and utilities and the education of the

children.

Increase Access to Vocational Education

Average individual monthly income is very low because educational attainment level is also very

low. Thus, in the long term, the level of education must be increased.

An effective intervention that requires a shorter time, however, is increasing access to

vocational education since the study has shown that having vocational skills contribute to the level of

income as shown by the fact that those who graduated from vocational courses rank second after

college graduates in terms of average income.

Thus, vocational courses which are relatively cheaper than going to college should be made

available as a cheap but effective intervention in raising incomes. Moreover, not only does it take less

time to complete but is also open to most people even those of more advanced age who no longer find

it practical to go back to traditional school.

Teach Households to Build Private All-Concrete Septic Tanks The first component is adequate for most families since most do have access to such sanitary

toilets. However, access to a sewerage system (private all-concrete septic tank) is low.. To convince the

people, its advantages, especially in terms of protecting the community water systems must be

explained.

Encourage Waste Segregation and Discourage Burning of Waste Build More Drainage Systems with Sufficient Capacity to Handle Rainwater The first component (proper disposal of solid waste) is adequate for most (97.5%) households.

However, most families are wanting in the second component with only 9.2% of families saying that the

drainage system in their neighborhood is adequate.

This is one very concrete project that the barangays can undertake as a much-needed

infrastructure instead of building not-so-needed infrastructure like waiting sheds etc. Another one is the

construction of sidewalks.

Build more health centers that have enough supply of medicine for common illnesses

[50]

Access to health services is also not sufficient because although most have access to health

centers (87.7%), only less than one-third (32.19%) of those who needed medicine for common sickness

(Cough, Colds and Fever) are able to get medicine in sufficient quantity.

Due to the physical characteristics of their environment, residents of urban poor areas, are

prone to sickness. Thus it is important that they have access to health centers. Also, they must have

access to sufficient quantities of medicine for at least the most common sicknesses because such

common sickness if left untreated can turn serious. Of course, these health hazards only make it even

more difficult for urban poor families to get out of their present economic circumstances.

Build more educational institutions especially high schools and vocational schools. Physical access to high school is very poor. Again, high schools are important because many

employers require applicants for work to have at least a high school diploma. If schools are far, then

transportation costs will likely prevent children from going to school since it will eat up much of the

already low household income. Again, this inability to send children to school will also have implications

on the ability of the household to sustain itself economically in the long term.

There are no vocational schools accessible to the families in the barangay. As noted earlier,

vocational education can be very effective in increasing income.20

No policy alternatives would be imposed because the statute on the status quo has a

good framework although the impact of its implementation is not that inclusive.

Therefore, a good policy for addressing a public dilemma is not always the lack of

government’s monitoring and administration but the success of its effect according to

the policy framework lies on the citizen of the State or a locality whether they will obey

what the law, ordinance, policy dictates or they will just ignore what’s being

implemented. What so important as a factor for the success of a certain policy is the

discipline of its residence or citizens.

20

Taken as CHAPTER VI of this study from the SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION part of the survey of JJCICSI’s 2007 Baseline Socio-Economic Level of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City.

[51]

REFERENCES CITED:

National Capital Region Profile (www.gazette.ph)

City of Quezon Profile: Geography (www.quezoncity.gov.ph)

Philippine Government. Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. Quezon City:

Philippine Legislature, 2000

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ilo/2005/12/11/news/environment.present.ra.9003.html.

Sun Star, 2005

Navarro, Rhea Abigail. A System Approach on Solid Waste Management in Metro Manila, Lund,

Sweden, November 23, 2003

2007 Baseline Socio-Economic Survey of Barangay Payatas, Quezon City. John J. Carroll Institute

on Church and Social Issues, 2007

Dr. Begum I, Zareena. Solid Waste Management (Dissemination Paper- 19), Centre of Excellence

in Environmental Economics, Madras School of Economics, India

Vincentian Missionaries Social Development Foundation Inc. The Payatas Environmental

Development Programme: microenterprise promotion and involvement in solid waste

management in Quezon City,1998