JICA, Cebu City unveil P15-M wastewater treatment facility

MANILA, Philippines – The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Cebu City government unveiled a P15-million ($343,597.03*) wastewater treatment facility.

JICA is assisting Cebu in its wastewater management by sharing a patented technology from AMCON Inc., a Japanese small and medium enterprise.

The technology, a volute dewatering press, will help treat wastewater from septic tanks efficiently and at low cost.

JICA also donated a dump truck to help bring the sludge, a solid by-product of wastewater treatment, to a composting facility.

JICA also cited studies that show only 10% of wastewater is treated in the Philippines.

Septic tank, the primary sanitation equipment in the country, is also often improperly designed, and cleaning is not done regularly.

In some cases, wastewater is disposed directly to bodies of water without undergoing treatment, resulting in pollution of ground water and other water resources like rivers and seas.

“We hope that local governments of highly urbanized centers like Cebu will realize the importance of sewerage and septic management systems,” said Takahiro Morita, Senior Representative at JICA Philippines Office.

Through this support, JICA aims to share Cebu’s collective vision of sustainable development that also nurtures and preserves the city’s natural environment, Morita added.

JICA also lauded the local government of Cebu for taking steps to introduce wastewater management to other LGUs and neighboring cities. Cebu already passed a septage management ordinance to sustain the project.

JICA supports Mega Cebu Vision 2050

Such effort is in support of the Mega Cebu Vision 2050, a development blueprint aimed at promoting tourism and resilient, sustainable development of Cebu.

In addition to the launching of the plant, JICA also led a seminar for LGUs and water districts to familiarize them with the National Sewerage and Septage Management Plan (NSSMP) and a financing scheme called “Environment Development Project (EDP),” a 2-step loan project of JICA with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), and the Japanese dewatering technologies.

Apart from development assistance to wastewater management, JICA likewise supported the crafting of the Mega Cebu Vision 2050, which envisions a vibrant, equitable, sustainable and competitive environment that embraces creativity and Cebu’s cultural, historical, and natural resources with strong citizen participation and responsive governance.

In 2012, Cebu partnered with Japan’s Yokohama City for technical cooperation on sustainable development.

Cebu, located at the center of Central Visayas, is the Philippines’ second largest metropolitan area with a population of about 2.55 million as of 2012. Industries including services and business process outsourcing continue to thrive in Cebu.

A study by the Japan External Trade Organization showed Cebu’s gross domestic capital per capita at $2,612 as of 2012. – Rappler.com

*($1 = P43.66)