SHOULD the Davao City Government pushes through with its planned US$ 1.2-billion worth of waste-to-energy this year, the city's sanitary land fill might be closed by 2016, an environment official said.
Lawyer Joseph Dominic Felizarta, City Environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro) chief, said the closure will be for the better since the city will save at least P20 million in keeping the sanitary landfill idle for years.
Felizarta told Sun.Star Friday the waste-to-energy facility to be built by German firm, Herhof, is set to be completed within five years.
"Kung naa na ning facility sa Herhof, dako jud kaayo ang ma save sa city (The city will be saving a lot with the Herhof facility)," Felizarta said.
Felizarta said as soon as the facility becomes operational, the city will be using it as an eco-park and a decomposing site.
He said without the waste-to-energy facility, the lifespan of the city's landfill will be at least 15 years. The facility will extend the lifespan of the landfill by decades.
Felizarta said the city spent approximately P300 million for the landfill. He said the city will not spend anything on the Herhof project.
The project is also expected to bring in at least P107 million in terms of tax revenues and savings.
He said that for tax revenues alone, the facility will probably be paying at least P87 million if the city will be producing 500 tons of garbage per day.
Based on the proposed contract between Herhof and the City Government, the city must comply with the minimum requirement of 500-1000 tons per day.
