Baste Duterte Criticizes DENR Over Davao City’s Growing Garbage Problem
BASTE DUTERTE – Mayor Baste Duterte has voiced strong criticism against the DENR over its handling of the landfill suspension.
Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte has openly criticized the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), holding the agency responsible for the worsening garbage situation in the city following the closure of the sanitary landfill in Barangay New Carmen.
The landfill operations were suspended on May 22 after a tragic trash slide occurred on May 20. The incident destroyed 15 homes in a nearby community, claiming the lives of two residents. As of Friday, authorities were still searching for one person who remained missing.
The DENR explained that the temporary suspension was necessary “to secure the ongoing search and retrieval operations, enable geotechnical assessments, and prevent further risks to nearby communities.”
With the landfill unable to receive waste for nearly two weeks, garbage collection services across Davao City have experienced significant delays. Duterte acknowledged the disruption but argued that the prolonged closure has created a much larger problem for residents.
“The longer this situation continues, the greater the risk of a public health and sanitation problem—not because of the waste itself, but because of the bureaucratic ineptitude of the DENR,” Duterte said in a statement posted on social media on Thursday.
According to the mayor, the city government’s own evaluation indicates that landfill operations can already resume. He emphasised that residents living near the affected area have already been relocated, thereby reducing the immediate threat to public safety.
“The people living around the landfill have already been evacuated. The threat to human life has been addressed. What remains are corrective measures that can be undertaken while allowing landfill operations to continue based on sound and practical judgment,” Duterte said.
“Instead, the DENR chose to suspend the entire operation without providing a clear timeline for reopening,” he added.
Following the landslide, approximately 180 families were transferred to safer locations. Meanwhile, search and retrieval efforts continue for a woman believed to be trapped beneath the massive pile of garbage.
On May 26, the city government formally appealed to the DENR to reconsider the temporary shutdown of the landfill. In response, the DENR regional office disclosed on Friday that local officials had proposed establishing a temporary disposal area within the 11-hectare landfill property, subject to engineering requirements identified by the agency.
The DENR noted that the city government had committed to completing the necessary interventions by June 9, including slope stabilisation measures, drainage improvements, and other safety-related requirements, pending verification.
“We are complying with all requirements. We only hope that decisions affecting around 750 tons of waste daily and nearly two million Dabawenyos are guided not only by regulations, but also by practical realities and common sense,” Duterte said.
Earlier, Duterte also revealed that the city had identified alternative garbage collection sites, including one located in front of the DENR regional office, “so they can personally appreciate the volume of garbage that accumulates when an essential public service is halted indefinitely.”
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