Transports of construction materials for the proposed waste-to-energy (WTE) incinerator project were seen in a site in Smokey Mountain, Tondo without clearance from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), residents and progressive groups report on Monday, 18 May.
The 26-billion-peso and 100-megawatt priority project of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno aims to reduce waste by burning and turning it into energy. It was proposed by Manila Integrated Environment Corp. (MIEC), a project company by Phil. Ecology Systems Corp. (PHILECO), in partnership with Osaka-based Kanadevia Corp., which developed the waste-burning technology.
Progressive groups Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) Manila and the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) reported that MIEC and Kanadevia initiated "illegal" pre-construction activities without the mandatory prerequisite Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC).
Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan PNE) issued a statement about the alleged pre-constructions, claiming that this “bypass” of the “false solution” project violates the country’s regulations that classify 100 MW as “Category A Environmentally Critical Project (ECP).”
An estimated 23,000 residents are situated in Barangay 128, Smokey Mountain as of 2020, where the WTE is to be built. Since its protest in April, GAIA and experts have said that the project is harmful to the environment and the health of nearby communities.
“Rather than relying on unproven incineration technologies that accelerate the climate crisis, President Marcos Jr.'s administration must immediately impose a strict ban on all waste imports. Instead of serving as a dumping ground for the richest nations’ trash, the government should be enforcing a total moratorium on waste trade and holding transnational corporations accountable,” Kalikasan’s statement read.
The Climate Change Network for Community-based Initiatives (CCNCI) reported that R-II builders intimidated and coerced local residents into accepting P60,000 for their displacement. R-II builders is also owned by MIEC owner Reghis Romero.