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Republic of the Philippines D
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. °= Sah we
Quezon City BAT BL

NINETEENTH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 2001,

Introduced by the Honorable EULOGIO “LEO” R. RODRIGUEZ

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Section 16, Article II of the 1987 Constitution provides that "The State shall
protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology with
the rhythm and harmony of nature.”

This representation personally knows that garbage is one of the most perennial
problems, not just of Catanduanes, but the entire Philippines. Aside from garbage, the
province of Catanduanes also have problems with electricity production. It is high time
to pass a law that can hit two birds with one stone so to speak — solve the country’s
solid waste issues and answer insufficient electricity production at the same time.

After thorough study of the different waste-to-energy proposed bills, this
representation believes that a law promoting the conversion of waste to energy will be
the perfect win-win solution to the country’s problems about garbage and energy. As
such, this representation is fully supporting such move and is filing herein a bill that
also supports waste-to-energy technology to the country’s solid waste and energy
problems.

To highlight, the approval of a law that promotes waste-to-energy technology
will concretize the Constitutional mandate of protecting and advancing the Filipinos’
right to a balanced and healthful ecology that is with the rhythm and harmony of
nature.

For the people of the Philippines, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 2 0 01

Introduced by the Honorable EULOGIO “LEO” R. RODRIGUEZ

AN ACT ALLOWING THE USE OF WASTE TO ENERGY TECHNOLOGY
IN ELECTRICITY, FUEL AND HEAT GENERATION,
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Waste to Energy Act of 2022.”

Section 2. Declaration of Policy. ~ It is hereby declared the policy of the State to adopt
a systematic and comprehensive solid waste management program which ensures the
Protection of public health and environment, and encourage the development of
environmentally sustainable waste to energy facilities to address the solid waste
disposal and energy shortage.

It is also the policy of the State to allow the process of incineration in waste to eneray
facilities provided that the burning process does not emit poisonous and toxic fumes.

Section 3. Objectives. - The objectives of this Act are:

(a) To allow the operation of waste to energy facilities to aid in the reduction of solid
waste disposal and in the increase of energy production;

(b) To provide guidelines on the evaluation, establishment, and operation of waste
to energy facilities for the integrated management of municipal solid wastes
which ensure the protection of public health and environment;

(c) To increase the efficiency of collection and transport of solid wastes;


(d)To ensure the proper segregation, collection, transport, storage, treatment and
disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adoption of the best
environmental practices in ecological waste management, including incineration
in a waste to energy facility;

(e) To encourage private sector participation in solid waste management and waste
to energy conversion;

(f) To strengthen the cooperation of local government units in solid waste
management and materials recovery facilities to make an efficient collection and
transport of municipal solid wastes from source and until it reaches the waste to
energy facilities;

(g)To strengthen the integration of solid waste management into the academic
curricula in order to promote environmental awareness and action among the
citizenry and to minimize the disposal of solid wastes and expedite the
segregation process;

(h) To encourage the development and use of local technology; and

(i) To improve, ensure and protect the health of the public by reducing the wastes
that are to be thrown directly to the sanitary landfills through proper operation of
the materials recovery facilities and the operation of waste to energy facilities.

Section 3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the following terms shall
mean:

(a) Clustering is a strategy of pooling available resources of neighborhood cities,
municipalities or barangays for the establishment of a common solid waste
management facility or service;

(b) Emission shall refer to any air contaminant, pollutant, gas or unwanted sound
from a known source which is passed into the atmosphere;

(c) Hazardous Wastes shall refer to by-products, side-products, process residues,
spent reaction media, contaminated plant or equipment or other substances
from manufacturing operations and as customer discards of manufactured
products which present unreasonable risk and/or injury to health and safety
and to the environment;

(d) Host LGU shall refer to the local government unit where the waste to energy
facility is located;

(e) Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) shall include solid waste transfer station or
sorting station, drop off center, a composting facility and a recycling facility;

(f) Municipal Solid Waste shall refer to wastes produced from activities which
include a combination of domestic wastes from residential, commercial,
institutional and industrial wastes;

(g) Recyclable Materials shall refer to any waste material that can be converted
into suitable beneficial use or for other purposes;

(h) Sanitary Landfill shall refer to waste disposal site designed, constructed,
‘operated and maintained in a manner that exerts engineering control over


significant potential environmental impacts arising from the development and
operation of the facility;

(i) Segregation shall refer to solid waste management practice of separating
different materials found in solid waste in order to promote recycling and re-
use of resources and to reduce the volume of waste for collection and
disposal;

G) Waste to Energy shall refer to the process of converting wastes with various
technologies, usually the conversion of non-recyclable waste materials into
usable heat, electricity, or fuel through a variety of processes; and

(k) Waste to Energy Facility shall refer to the facility where the waste to energy
operations are conducted.

Section 4. Waste to Energy Technology, allowed. - The use of waste to energy
technologies which converts non-recyclable solid waste materials, through any mode or
process, including incineration, into usable heat, electricity, or fuel shall be allowed,

Section 5. Guidelines. - The Department of Science and Technology, in coordination
with the Department of Energy and the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources shall provide guidelines regarding the operation of waste to energy
technology which must include:

(a)Compliance of environmental permits, clearances and other legal
requirements from concerned agencies prior to construction, set-up and
operation of a waste to energy facility;

(b) Solid waste management plan of the host Local Government Unit consistent
with Republic Act No. 9003;

(c) Clustering of Local Government Units and/or forming partnerships with the
private sector in the establishment, construction and operation of waste to
energy facility;

(d) Compliance with the Euro Emission Standards;

(e) Operational guidelines for waste to energy facility, such as, but not limited to:

(i) kind of waste that may be accepted by the facility for processing;

(ii) implementation of MRFs, Residual Containment Areas, Sanitary landfills
and other disposal facilities;

(iii)quality and sustainability of wastes; and

(iv)documentation indicating the quantity in weight, source and type of
source-segregated wastes to be processed including the date and time
received.

(f) Guidelines for appropriate storage facilities for segregated wastes, materials
and by-product from the operation, providing proper measures to address
risks of explosion, combustion, corrosion, contamination, infection, and odor
emission;


(g)Manual of operation and quality assurance and control and standards for
quality control/assurance system;

(h)A detailed emergency response plan to ensure effective and rapid
containment and clean-up in the event of an emergency incident;

(i) Personal protective equipment and medical care in compliance with existing
laws, rules, and regulations to all personnel of the facility directly handling or
exposed to waste materials, in-process materials and finished products;

(j) Pollution control and abatement facilities to ensure that all emissions and
effluents comply with environmental standards;

(k) Requirements for treatment, storage and disposal facilities for any hazardous
waste resulting from the operations of the waste to energy facility;

(I) Allowable locations for waste to energy facilities, which must be far from
urban areas;

(m) And such other guidelines as may be necessary for the furtherance of the
purpose and objectives of this Act.

Section 6. Environmental Monitoring. - The Environmental Management Bureau of the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall regularly and periodically
monitor the environmental compliance of the waste to energy facility, including its
emissions, and shall promulgate guidelines on the periodic reports and documentations
required to be submitted to the Bureau.

The Bureau shall have the power to issue a cease and desist order or temporary closure
orders for non-compliant facilities.

Section 7. Acceptable Waste Materials. — the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources shall provide a list of acceptable waste that may be processed in the waste
to energy facility. It shall ensure that only materials that pass the international
environmental standards with high calorific values are allowed to be processed in waste
to energy facilities. The following shall not be acceptable materials:

(a) Recyclable wastes;

(b) Health care wastes;

(c) Explosives;

(d) Batteries;

(e) Radioactive wastes;

(f) Electronic wastes;

(g) Cyanide wastes;

(h) Unsegregated municipal solid wastes; and

(i) Other wastes that are not safe or efficient for processing in the waste to
energy facility, as determined by the DENR.

Section 8. Prohibition on Importation of Wastes; exception. — Importation of waste
materials that are to be used by waste to energy facilities shall not be allowed, unless,


the Environment Management Bureau (EMB) certifies that the supply of acceptable
wastes in the Philippines are insufficient to meet the demands for the efficient
production of the waste to energy facilities, and unless the other requirements on
importation of waste under Republic Act No. 6969 and the Basel Convention are also
complied with.

Section 9. Clustering. — Neighboring Local Government Units are mandated to establish
a common solid waste management and materials recovery facility, in accordance with
Section 33 of the Local Government Code, and shall jointly develop an efficient
collection and transport operation of municipal solid wastes.

Local Government Units are authorized to sell segregated municipal solid wastes to
privately-owned or operated waste to energy facilities.

Section 10. Tax Incentives. — Operators of waste to energy facilities shall enjoy a five
(5) year tax holiday from the start of its commercial operations, tax and duty free
importation of raw materials, capital equipment, machineries, and spare parts subject to
the conditions under Section 8 of this Act, and VAT zero-rating of all local purchases of
raw materials.

Section 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Department of Science and
Technology, in coordination with the Department of Energy and the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources shall collectively craft, and issue, within thirty (30)
days from the date of the effectivity of this Act, the Implementing Rules and
Regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

Section 12. Fines and Penalties. - Any person who violates any of the provisions of this
Act, including the rules and regulations thereof, shall be imposed with a penalty of
imprisonment of six (6) months and one day to six (6) years or a fine of at least one
hundred thousand pesos (Php100,000) but not more than one million pesos
(Php1,000,000), or both.

If the offender is a juridical person, the president, manager, directors, trustees, or the
Officials directly in charge of the operations shall suffer the penalty provided. Permits
and licenses issued to such juridical entities shall automatically be revoked and
canceled.

If the offender is a public official, the penalties imposed by this Act shall be in addition
to and without prejudice to Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt
Practices Act.

Section 13. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act shall be held
unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions not otherwise affected shall remain in
full force and effect.


Section 14. Repealing Clause. - Provisions of Republic Act No. 8749, Republic Act
No. 9003, Republic Act No. 6969, Republic Act No. 9513 and all other laws, decrees,
executive orders, proclamations and other executive issuances which are inconsistent
with or contrary to the provisions of this Act are hereby amended accordingly.

Section 15. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
following its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) national
newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,