Metro Manila faces waste management and flooding challenges

Metro Manila is facing significant waste management and flooding challenges during the current rainy season. In Manila, Mayor Isko Moreno credited weekly de-clogging drives and uninterrupted waste collection for easing flood impacts. Under Executive Order No. 3, local officials and city departments are tasked with weekly cleaning operations across 896 barangays. To combat health risks, the city has prepared 165,000 doxycycline capsules to protect residents from leptospirosis following flood exposure.

In neighboring areas, the crisis remains acute. Residents in Parañaque City reported a “sea of trash” in the Redemptorist Water Channel after monsoon rains and high tides pushed debris from Pasay City and Manila Bay into local waterways. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority reported collecting 748.87 metric tons of waste between August 10 and 13, requiring over 200 dump trucks.

While environmental groups are calling for single-use plastic bans and stricter penalties, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has suggested that improving waste disposal facilities is a more critical priority than imposing fines. Under the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, primary responsibility for waste management rests with local government units.