DAVAO CITY – A Davao City councilor said Tuesday, June 16, that the city is open to reviewing and strengthening its solid waste management policies, as several private firms explore possible partnerships to help address the city's garbage challenges.

Speaking at the Pulong-Pulong sa Dabawenyos at the Sangguniang Panlungsod, Councilor Temujin Ocampo, chairperson of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, said the city is open to updating its solid waste management to match national law and new technologies.

Davao City's solid waste management is regulated under City Ordinance No. 0361-10, as amended by Ordinance No. 0987-22, which requires waste segregation, composting, and proper disposal, and imposes penalties for violations.

Ocampo disclosed that several private companies, including one from Singapore, have expressed interest in working with the city on solid waste management initiatives, including waste-to-energy and waste-to-resources projects.

Among them is Gain City Waste Resources, a Malaysian-Singaporean company that recently started a feasibility study and visited the sanitary landfill in Davao City to assess local waste streams and determine the viability of its waste-to-resources technology.

"The company began its study on June 15," Ocampo said. "They are using fifth-generation waste management, or waste-to-resources."

He added that the system uses a circular economy approach and aims for "zero landfill" by processing nearly all types of waste without burning them.

Under the proposed system, recyclables can be recovered, food waste can be converted into compost, and residual waste can be processed into refuse-derived fuel, Ocampo said, adding that only about three to four percent of total waste would remain for disposal.

"The technology is currently used in countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia, and is expanding into Vietnam," the councilor said. "If this pushes through and becomes favorable to Davao, the city could be the first in the Philippines to use the system."

Ocampo said the company first engaged with the city government last year and recently submitted a letter of intent to conduct the feasibility study. After the study is completed, he added, the company is expected to submit a formal proposal to the city.

He said Davao City is carefully reviewing all proposals to ensure they are beneficial to the city. He added that the City Council will review any proposal, discuss it in committee hearings if necessary, and then bring it to the plenary for further consideration if approved.

Aside from Gain City Waste Resources, Ocampo said other groups have also shown interest in partnering with the city, including a Korean firm exploring the possibility of extracting methane gas from the landfill and converting it into energy.

While the city continues to welcome long-term waste management solutions, he said the local government remains focused on addressing the pressing need to restore normal garbage collection and disposal operations.

The councilor added that if a waste-to-resources system is eventually implemented, the city could significantly reduce its reliance on sanitary landfills and may even consider mining existing landfill waste for processing and recovery.

Ocampo said the reclaimed land could later be redeveloped for other purposes, such as an industrial park or an eco-park, depending on the city's long-term development plans and land-use priorities. He noted that the city continues to address concerns about the garbage collection.

Because of the city's growing population, the councilor said purchasing all the necessary equipment at once would cost billions of pesos, prompting the local government to continue renting trucks while gradually expanding its fleet.

He added that barangays with larger budgets have invested in collection vehicles and segregation areas, while those barangays with limited resources are encouraged to focus on public education and household waste segregation.

"In the long run, the city's target is source segregation," Ocampo said, adding that segregating waste on the household level would reduce the volume of garbage reaching landfills by allowing recyclable and reusable materials to be recovered earlier in the waste management process.