DENR orders nationwide landfill audit

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has ordered a nationwide audit of all landfill operations following a month-long fire at the Navotas Sanitary Landfill that was declared extinguished Monday.

DENR Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna directed all regional offices to validate the compliance of landfill operators across the country, including those responsible for dumpsites that have already been closed.

The directive aims to ensure that safety protocols are strictly followed to prevent similar environmental disasters.

Cuna stressed that the responsibility of a landfill operator does not end when a facility stops accepting waste.

Under environmental regulations, operators remain liable for proper safety closure procedures and long-term rehabilitation efforts.

“We will continue to monitor the landfill, including its rehabilitation, because it needs to continue,” Cuna said during an inspection of the Navotas site.

The inspection, joined by Public Works Secretary Vivencio Dizon and Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez, followed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s announcement that the blaze was finally out. However, officials warned that the risk has not entirely dissipated.

Dizon cited that methane gas trapped beneath the waste could still burn underground, requiring a continuous soil cover to prevent a resurgence of the fire.

“If this is not properly maintained, another fire might break out again,” Dizon said.