MANILA, Philippines — No less than Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country will work closely with the Philippine government to resolve the issue on tons of garbage dumped to the country four years ago.
In a press conference at the International Media Center at the World Trade Center, Trudeau emphasized the legal restrictions which hindered the speedy resolution of the issue.
The garbage issue has been straining the Canadian-Filipino relations for years.
As it is now, 50 shipping containers full of Vancouver garbage continue to rot in Philippine ports.
Environmentalist and several Philippine officials want the Canadian government to take back what they dumped here.
Shiploads of garbage contained inside the 103 container vans from Canada arrived in batches at the Port of Manila from 2013 to 2014
The garbage containers were initially declared as plastic scrap but turned out garbage.
He added “Canada is very open to work with the Philippine government to resolve the garbage problem. We have legal barriers that prevented us from receiving the wastes back to Canada. These impediments have now been addressed. So it is theoretically possible to bring them back.”
A “Canadian solution” is underway, Trudeau said.
Environmentalist groups have urged President Rodrigo Duterte to hold Canada accountable for the dumping of the hazardous waste. -EZC/Newsline.ph
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