Smoke from Navotas landfill fire extends to Bataan, PhilSA says
By Trixee Rosel
(Courtesy of the Philippine Space Agency)
Satellite monitoring of nitrogen dioxide levels showed that the impact of the Navotas Sanitary Landfill fire that broke out on April 10, 2026, extended to Bataan, the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) said.
PhilSA said the fire, which started around 8 p.m. on April 10, was tracked through satellite data.
The data showed the westward movement of smoke and air pollutants from Navotas due to prevailing winds.
Time-lapse satellite observations on April 11 showed elevated nitrogen dioxide concentrations over Navotas City, extending toward nearby provinces, including Bataan.
These observations were based on hourly satellite snapshots taken from 7:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
Darker shades in the satellite imagery indicated higher nitrogen dioxide levels, which served as a proxy for the extent of the smoke during daytime conditions.
By the afternoon of April 11, PhilSA noted that pollution levels had declined but remained relatively high across Metro Manila.
The agency said its satellite findings were consistent with ground observations, confirming that the landfill fire’s impact extended beyond Navotas to surrounding areas in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
The Navotas landfill has been non-operational since 2025, although residual waste at the site was identified as a possible contributing factor to the blaze.
PhilSA added that the incident highlights the value of satellite technology in monitoring air quality and assessing the spread of emissions during large-scale fire events.