Aging Baguio sewer plant raises health, environmental concerns

BAGUIO CITY — Baguio City's nearly 40-year-old sewerage treatment plant is struggling to keep pace with rapid population growth and deteriorating infrastructure, raising concerns over public health and environmental protection.

Data from the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources show that fecal coliform levels in the Balili and Bued rivers have exceeded those recorded in Manila Bay, underscoring the city's wastewater management challenges. City officials estimate that more than P1 billion is needed to rehabilitate the Balili Catchment Area but have so far sought only half that amount from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.

Long-term plans to expand sewer coverage to nearly 36,000 households by 2035 offer little immediate relief and exclude the Ambalanga, Bued and Asin-Gallano catchment areas, where land acquisition for new facilities remains unresolved. The city also lost a $46.99-million international rehabilitation proposal after missing administrative deadlines, leaving it exposed to possible penalties under the Philippine Clean Water Act while considering new sanitation and desludging fees to fund future improvements.