CALAMBA CITY, Laguna (PIA) — After more than two decades of implementing the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 or Republic Act No. 9003, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) CALABARZON is complementing its traditional enforcement approach with a reward-based strategy to encourage communities to properly manage their waste.
DENR CALABARZON Regional Executive Director Henry Adornado said the agency is now putting greater emphasis on recognizing communities that demonstrate effective and innovative waste management practices through the ‘Malinis na Barangay’ program.
“Ang approach naman natin is reward system. Strategic ito, responsive and community-centered activity kung saan ang bida ay ‘yung barangay,” Adornado said during the Kapihan sa PIA program of the Philippine Information Agency.
The Malinis na Barangay program is designed as a strategic, responsive, and community-centered initiative that identifies barangays in the region implementing effective, innovative, and sustainable ways of managing their solid waste in every community.
Instead of looking only at what communities are doing wrong, the program seeks to identify what barangays are doing right, recognize their efforts, and provide incentives that can encourage other communities to adopt similar practices.
The program will award P100,000 to the champion barangay, P75,000 to the first runner-up, and P50,000 to the second runner-up. For the DENR, however, the financial incentives are only part of the bigger objective.
“It’s not only the reward; ang gusto natin makikita dito ay magkaroon ng behavioral change ang ating community para hindi nahihirapan kami sa national government in convincing these people to properly manage their solid waste,” Adornado said.
Adornado added that the Malinis na Barangay program also seeks to reduce the collected household waste, and instead focus on segregation and enriching the circular economy within local governments.
DENR expressed belief that encouraging barangays to become active partners in addressing the waste problem contributes to the administration’s push for a cleaner and more sustainable country. (AM/PIA CALABARZON)