PHP 15.4M in ukay-ukay buried in landfill

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

More than PHP 15.4 million worth of forfeited, imported secondhand clothing (commonly known as ukay-ukay) confiscated by the Bureau of Customs (BOC)-Port of Iloilo, was buried at the Calajunan sanitary landfill in Mandurriao, Iloilo City, on June 29 and 30.

City General Services Office (GSO) head Engr. Neil Ravena said the BOC disposed of 2,171 bales, 160 sacks, and four boxes of forfeited ukay-ukay, weighing a total of 127.24 metric tons.

At least 10 lorries transported the confiscated goods to the Calajunan sanitary landfill.

“We dug a pit at the sanitary landfill where the items were buried,” Ravena said Monday, July 6.

Ravena said the Department of Environment and Natural Resources also recommended the disposal method to ensure compliance with environmental regulations.

He said the disposal was delayed because he explored the possibility of diverting the confiscated textiles into a circular economy program instead of burying them.

“I was negotiating if they could become part of the circular economy instead of disposing of them in our sanitary landfill because we know that textiles can take 20 to 30 years to decompose,” Ravena said.

However, he said the BOC was required to follow its legal procedures governing the destruction of condemned and forfeited goods.

“The condemnation process is very clear under their legal procedures, and they have to follow it. That’s why we ended up disposing of the condemned, forfeited ukay-ukay in the sanitary landfill,” he added.

According to Ravena, BOC auditors had already approved the disposal method.

“They have an approved process for disposal. The only method allowed is disposal in the sanitary landfill,” he said.

An excavator buried the confiscated items to ensure they could no longer be recovered.

Ravena acknowledged that burying more than 127 metric tons of textiles would consume valuable landfill space and slightly reduce the facility’s operational lifespan.

“It will shorten the life of the sanitary landfill, but that is the prescribed technical process. The BOC coordinated with us, and we assisted them in disposing of the forfeited items,” he said.

The 3.5-hectare Calajunan sanitary landfill is expected to reach the end of its 10-year operational lifespan this year, though city officials have said the facility can continue operating until the planned Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility in La Paz becomes operational.

Imported secondhand clothing is generally prohibited under Republic Act No. 4653, enacted in 1966, which bans its commercial importation to protect public health and the local garment industry, although donated used clothing may be allowed under specific exemptions.

The law originally required that confiscated used clothing and rags be destroyed through burning. In this case, however, the GSO and the BOC opted for landfill burial after the DENR recommended the method to ensure compliance with current environmental regulations.

Ravena believes the BOC chose to bury the confiscated goods to prevent them from being recovered and illegally resold.

“One reason they disposed of them this way is that they didn’t want the items to be reused. They likely wanted to prevent employees or waste pickers from recovering them and selling them again,” he said.