President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., during his fifth State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday, said he wants the 25-year-old Ecological Solid Waste Management Act updated.
This move is to strengthen efforts to correct public waste management, he said.
‘One systemic intervention is to update our 25-year-old Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, aligning it with modern waste management practices, such as waste-to-energy and waste treatment technology,’ the President said.
The Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, also known as Republic Act No. 9003, establishes a systematic program to protect public health and the environment through waste segregation, recycling, and proper disposal.
Marcos said the government can draw inspiration from the solid waste management practices of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority in Metro Manila, such as waste recovery, processing, and upcycling.
‘For example, what used to be the Carmona Sanitary Landfill of the 1990s is now the MMDA Nature Park,’ he said.
‘More than a multi-purpose green space, it shall soon be the base of its high-level disaster preparedness training and simulation exercises,’ added Marcos.