WEBINAR ON MANAGING COMMUNITY-BASED TSD FACILITY FOR E-WASTES CALLS FOR INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF E-WASTE COLLECTION IN THE PHILIPPINES

In line with the celebration of World Environment Day, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), through  EcoWaste Coalition, organized a highly informative webinar on managing community-based TSD Facilitiy for e-wastes in the Philippines.

The webinar, organized under the “Implementation of PCB Management Programs for Electric Cooperatives and Safe E-Waste Management” project, aimed to encourage and orient communities or groups interested in establishing their Treatment, Storage, and Disposal (TSD) Facilities for electronic waste (e-waste) in the Philippines. 

In her opening remarks, Ms. Esperanza Sajul, Assistant Director of the DENR-EMB, emphasized the urgent need for sustainable e-waste management through institutionalizing e-waste collection in the Philippines. She expressed, “the limited number of TSD Facilities for e-wastes in the Philippines cannot compete with the rising number of electronic wastes. We must act fast and replicate best practices in managing community-based TSD facilities for e-wastes.”

Currently, the Philippines has two e-waste facilities in Metro Manila: the Material Recovery Facility/ Treatment, Storage, and Disposal (TSD) Facilities for e-waste located in Brgy. Bagong Silang, Caloocan City, and Brgy. Dampalit, Malabon City. “Our barangay [Brgy. Bagong Silang] has greatly benefited from the establishment of an e-waste facility. More than providing us with decent jobs, it also protects us from the harmful effects of the mismanagement of e-waste. I believe that every barangay should have its own TSD Facilities for e-waste,” said Mr. Dante Lista, TSD Facility Manager and Pollution Control Officer of Barangay 176. 

Ms. Elizabeth Carino, Senior Environmental Management Specialist of the DENR-EMB, also provided an insightful overview of RA 6969, also known as the Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Waste Control Act. She underscored the pressing need to robustly implement this law to ensure proper management of toxic substances and hazardous waste, particularly in e-waste.She has also outlined the requirements needed to be able to set up a TSD Facility.

The webinar marked an essential step towards fostering collaboration among communities in the e-waste management ecosystem. By sharing knowledge, expertise, and best practices, the webinar aimed to empower communities and groups interested in establishing TSD Facilities for e-waste, thereby contributing to the responsible disposal and management of e-waste, mitigating its harmful environmental and health effects.