This city is linking up with national government agencies to push its waste-to-energy (WTE) project and comply with requirements for national government funding needed to build the facility.

Assistant City Administrator Tristan Dwight Domingo said the local government initially partnered with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to conform with the prerequisites and get approval from the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board for the proposal.

“Just recently, the city wrote DENR to follow up on the plans to form a technical working group (TWG) for the project,” Domingo said in a statement Tuesday.

He said the TWG will be composed of the city government project team, the DENR – Environmental Management Bureau and other concerned offices.

With an in-depth feasibility study, he said the public can be assured that the Davao City WTE project will ensure compliance with the safety, health and environmental standards.

He made the assurance amid the supposed disinformation spread by groups or individuals opposing the project.

“The city recognizes everyone’s right to voice their opinions and comments on the project. However, we would like to appeal to them to be mindful of the statements that they release, and ensure that these are accurate,” Domingo said.

He noted that the partnership with DENR is vital as the funding from the national government will be coursed through the department, the venture being one of the pilot WTE projects in the country.

Domingo further emphasized that countries like Japan and those in Southeast Asia were successful with their respective solid waste management programs, as these are usually done with support from their national governments through subsidy or funding.

“That is the same financing scheme that we would like to pilot here in Davao City,” Domingo explained.

He said that the city would need an estimated PHP3.5 billion from the national government to fully fund the construction of the facility.

Domingo said the amount is on top of the PHP2.5 billion initially donated by the Japanese government for the project. (PNA)