Several local government units (LGUs) without sanitary landfills have struggled to dispose of municipal waste, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reported Saturday.

“There are lower-class municipalities that, aside from having no place to build a landfill within their jurisdiction, also do not have much funding to even send their garbage to other areas with landfills,” DENR Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna said on radio.

Cuna added that the focus should remain on the 3Rs — reduce, reuse and recycle, stressing that solid waste management begins at the barangay level, noting that the law assigns LGUs responsibility for managing solid waste within their respective jurisdictions.

“Everyone really needs to work together,” he said.

The DENR said its role includes education, capacity building and providing technical assistance to local governments for waste management.

Cuna also noted that clogged drainage systems contribute to flooding and waste accumulation in highly urbanized cities. He said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. used the term “garbage crisis” in reference to trash in Parañaque during the recent period of heavy rains.

According to Cuna, the term did not necessarily mean that all the garbage came from the city, as some may have been carried from other areas by the flow of water after a trash trap was damaged.

“There are trash traps installed by the MMDA [Metropolitan Manila Development Authority] in different areas to catch the garbage that goes into our esteros and waterways,” Cuna said.

“But for that particular day, perhaps because of the strong flow of water due to the rains, the trash trap moved, causing the garbage to accumulate in the area visited by the President,” he added.

Marcos recently reiterated that the government will continue its waste-to-energy program, which collects, processes and converts waste into electricity.