PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. highlighted the importance of circular solid waste management in addressing the rampant waste problem that clogs canals and river systems and worsens flooding.
During his inspection of the Marikina City Environmental Management Office’s recycling facility on Monday, the president hailed the city’s efforts to recycle the trash into useful products.
“We are here because this is the best example of a circular economy; they find ways to utilize — as much as possible — everything that can be reused or recycled,” said Marcos in Filipino.
Marikina collects 400,000 kilograms of trash. A total of 55 percent gets recycled in the facility, while the rest ends up in the New San Mateo sanitary landfill in Rizal.
Marikina River “used to rise drastically and overflow with just a little rain or a light drizzle. That doesn’t happen anymore, thanks to this project,” he said.
The recycled materials are turned into eco bags, bricks, school chairs, and compost.
The school chairs are donated to the city’s public schools, while the compost is sold for P15 per pack. The eco bags are given away as tokens.
Marcos hopes that other cities adopt Marikina’s waste management system.
As the country experiences the effects of climate change, similar initiatives should be adapted across the country for more efficient flood management, he said.
He also praised the city’s efforts to clear illegal structures along riverbanks and set up floating trash traps in key waterways to stop garbage from clogging the river.
In a related development, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) turned over to the Cavite provincial government a 35-hectare water catchment basin, whose construction was financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The Imus Retarding Basin (IRB) “will help manage excess floodwater during periods of intense rainfall by temporarily storing water and releasing it into the river at a regulated flow rate,” JICA’s Philippine office said in a statement on Monday.
“Aside from reducing immediate risks, investments in flood management strengthen long‑term resilience and preparedness against increasingly frequent and severe weather events,” it said.
The man-made reservoir played a critical role in managing excess floodwater during heavy rainfall caused by events such as Typhoon Carina and Kristine in 2024, and most recently during the monsoon rains in August, JICA said.
The agency said the Imus River and its tributaries, including the Bacoor River, complement JICA’s ongoing Cavite Industrial Area Flood Risk Management Project and “help minimize disruptions to communities and economic activities, particularly in Cavite’s industrial areas.” JICA Chief Representative Baba Takashi witnessed DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon transfer the ownership of the facility — first inaugurated in 2021 — to Cavite Gov. Francisco Gabriel Remulla.
Also present in the ceremony were DPWH Senior Undersecretary Emil Sadain, Cavite Vice Gov. Ramon Revilla Bautista, former Cavite governor and Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, and Imus City Mayor Alex Advincula.
The IRB forms part of the Flood Risk Management Project for Cagayan River, Tagoloan River and Imus River, a project financed by the Japanese government through JICA and implemented by DPWH to ease flooding in Cavite, particularly in the cities of Imus and Bacoor.
JICA cited the “strong cooperation” of DPWH, Cavite provincial government, Imus City government, local stakeholders, consultants, and contractors in making “this milestone possible.”
