The City Government of Baguio will study a proposal to establish a communal waste processing facility for the city and the entire Benguet Province.
On November 19, 2024, Jhaze Asuncion, Business Development Director of Cal Phil Builders and Management Philippines, presented their company’s proposal to the Baguio City Council.
According to Asuncion, the solid waste management project proposed by their company is part of a larger Tuba Industrial Ecozone initiative, covering an area of 65 hectares. The entire Tuba Industrial Ecozone project has a total investment of $150 million and is expected to create 10,000 direct jobs. It will be located in Tabaan Sur, Tuba, Benguet and will be accessible through Pugo-Rosario Road in La Union.
Intended to serve the BLISTT (Baguio-La Trinidad-Itogon-Sablan-Tuba-Tublay) area by the first quarter of 2025, the project has several important features such as electricity production through methane capture from waste processing, water extraction from waste for agricultural and household use, and fertilizer production from biowaste processing. However, the central component of the project is solid waste management for Baguio City and Benguet Province.
Asuncion said the project is poised to significantly impact the local community with benefits such as more affordable fertilizers for residents and local farmers, revenue generation for the LGU host, and efficient solid waste management services for the region.
To ensure that the project is scalable and efficient, Asuncion suggested that Baguio City could send its waste to the project for processing. This would help integrate the city’s waste management into the project’s design. He said if the project initially focuses only on Benguet municipalities, it may lead to a smaller Engineered sanitary Landfill (ESL). However, if Baguio’s waste is included from the start, it would allow for a larger and more efficient design.
He claimed that, by participating in this project, the city could reduce its transport costs as hauling waste from Baguio to Tuba would be significantly cheaper by shortening the travel distance to just 40 kilometers rather than sending it farther to farther ESLs.
Asuncion said the project’s funders require letters of interest from client LGUs to proceed with financing as these letters determine the project’s score and resource allocation.
He presented letters of intent from La Trinidad, Tublay, and Tuba, indicating no objections. He added that the company had introduced the project to local communities and stakeholders to ensure social acceptability, with initial community meetings starting as early as July.
Asunction requested that Baguio City also send a letter of intent specifying the number of tons of waste the city produces. This will allow the project to incorporate Baguio’s waste into its planning and design to ensure that the system is large enough to accommodate future needs.
Asuncion said while Cal Phil may not have existing projects with any LGU in the country, their technology partners such as High Figh Corporation and Orion Power have been implementing solid waste management technologies globally for over two decades.
Councilor Peter Fianza, Councilor Arthur Allad-iw, and Baguio IPMR Maximo Edwin Jr. emphasized the importance of adhering to Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for indigenous peoples (IPs) as the project site falls within an ancestral domain.
Edwin highlighted previous cases in other provinces where incomplete or fraudulent FPIC processes had led to legal issues and halted the project implementation. He requested to be informed of FPIC meetings to personally verify if all IPs are informed and involved in the consultation process.
Asuncion reported that consultations with the IP community are ongoing and that initial feedback had been positive, especially regarding potential benefits like water supply and electricity generation. Nevertheless, he expressed willingness to involve the city council in future sessions to ensure transparency and accountability.
Vice Mayor Faustino Olowan advised caution, citing a similar project in Sablan, Benguet where lack of community endorsement had led to its failure. He recommended securing full community acceptance and regulatory compliance before seeking endorsements from the city government to avoid premature commitments and prevent potential issues akin to the Sablan project.
Olowan also urged the proponents to provide concrete documentation showing endorsement of the project by the Municipality of Tuba to avoid conflicts with Tuba’s officials or accusations of bypassing local authorities.
Councilors Jose Molintas and Vladimir Cayabas said the city might not need to rush into issuing the letter of intent. Once the facility is operational, it could attract Baguio’s participation naturally as a nearby cost-effective alternative.
Cayabas recommended finalizing the agreement with Tuba first to strengthen the project’s credibility before seeking endorsement from Baguio City, while Molintas urged the proponents to focus on building the facility first as an operational facility would remove hypothetical competition and allow Baguio to send its waste to an existing and functional site.
While the councilors acknowledged the potential benefits of the project, they emphasized that clear agreements, compliance with procedural and legal standards, and actual facility construction should precede formal endorsements or commitments from the city government.
While CAL-PHIL had conducted feasibility studies for the entire project, Asuncion said the company commits to extracting data specific to Baguio City for more tailored planning. The study will include detailed cost projections, logistical considerations and operations benefits.
Meanwhile, Councilor Betty Lourted Tabanda pointed out that barangay-level waste collection would need reconfiguration if Cal Phil takes over hauling responsibilities. Asuncion proposed collaborative planning with the city to determine the future of existing trucks and collection systems.
Unanimously agreed upon by all city council members, Tabanda requested a formal written proposal, the results of the feasibility study conducted, and other relevant documents to be submitted to the General Services Office (GSO) for thorough review before city officials can take further action. Baguio City – Sangguniang Panlungsod
