DAVAO CITY (May 27) — Personnel from the Bureau of Customs stationed at the port of Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental on Thursday seized seven (7) shipments declared as processed engineered fuel (PEF) and municipal wastes from Australia.
According to Collector John Simon of the Mindanao Container Terminal, the shipments raised suspicion due to the declaration stated in the entry filed by the consignee. This prompted the Collector of the Port to order the immediate examination of the containers.
When the Customs examined the shipment, they found “shredded municipal waste” inside the containers.
Simon said the shipments originated from Australia and were consigned to Holcim Philippines Incorporated, a cement company.
Experts say, the PEF has significant calorific value and is a viable alternative to fossil fuels for use in cement kilns. Using PEF improves environmental outcomes by reducing greenhouse gas production per tonne of cement produced.
The Customs reported that he broker who facilitated the importation of the municipal wastes was also the same broker which facilitated the shipments of trash that came from South Korea in July and October 2018.
The same report said, that Holcim claimed their company has long been using PEF as an alternative fuel in producing cement, claiming that their importations are “low-grade fuel” and not garbage.
But Simon said, the product would require import permit prior to its importation, which both the importer and the customs broker failed to provide.
A warrant of seizure and detention (WSD) was against the shipments in violation of Republic Act (RA) No. 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act), RA 6969 (Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act), RA 8749 (Philippine Clean Air Act), and Section 1400 of RA 10863 (Customs Modernization and Tariff Act).
A scientific test will be conducted to confirm whether the shipments contained PEF or just ordinary municipal wastes.-ezc/NewsLine.ph
