Solid Waste Management Law

R.A. 9003

Declaration of Policies
-To adopt a systematic, comprehensive and ecological solid waste
management program which shall
1.​ Ensure the protection of public health and environment;

2.​ Utilize environmentally-sound methods that maximize the

utilization of valuable resources and encourage resource

conservation and recovery;

3.​ Set guidelines and targets for solid waste avoidance and volume

reduction through source reduction and waste minimization

measures, including composting, recycling, re-use, recovery, green

charcoal process, and others, before collection, treatment and

disposal in appropriate and environmentally sound solid waste

management facilities in accordance with ecologically sustainable

development principles;

4.​ Ensure the proper segregation, collection, transport, storage,

treatment and disposal of solid waste through the formulation and

adoption of the best environmental practice in ecological waste

management excluding incineration;

5.​ Promote national research and development programs for

improved solid waste management and resource conservation

techniques, more effective institutional arrangement and

indigenous and improved methods of waste reduction, collection,

separation and recovery;

 6.​ Encourage greater private sector participation in solid waste

management;

7.​ Retain primary enforcement and responsibility of solid waste

management with local government units while establishing a

cooperative effort among the national government, other local

government units, non-government organizations, and the private

sector;

8.​ Encourage cooperation and self-regulation among waste

generators through the application of market-based instruments;

9.​ Institutionalize public participation in the development and

implementation of national and local integrated, comprehensive

and ecological waste management programs; and

10.​Strengthen the integration of ecological solid waste management

and resource conservation and recovery topics into the academic

curricula of formal and non-formal education in order to promote

environmental awareness and action among the citizenry.

Definition of Terms. — For the purposes of this Act:

Agricultural waste shall refer to waste generated from planting or

harvesting of crops, trimming or pruning of plants and wastes or run-off

materials from farms or fields;

Bulky wastes shall refer to waste materials which cannot be

appropriately placed in separate containers because of either its bulky

size, shape or other physical attributes. These include large worn-out or

broken household, commercial, and industrial items such as furniture,

lamps, bookcases, filing cabinets, and other similar items;

Buy-back center shall refer to a recycling center that purchases or

otherwise accepts recyclable materials from the public for the purpose of

recycling such materials;

Collection shall refer to the act of removing solid waste from the source

or from a communal storage point;

Composting shall refer to the controlled decomposition of organic matter

by micro-organisms, mainly bacteria and fungi, into a humus-like product;

Consumer electronics shall refer to special wastes that include worn-out,

broken, and other discarded items such as radios, stereos, and TV sets;

Controlled dump shall refer to a disposal site at which solid waste is

deposited in accordance with the minimum prescribed standards of site

operation;

Disposal shall refer to the discharge, deposit, dumping, spilling, leaking or

placing of any solid waste into or in any land;

Disposal site shall refer to a site where solid waste is finally discharged

and deposited;
Ecological solid waste management shall refer to the systematic

administration of activities which provide for segregation at source,

segregated transportation, storage, transfer, processing, treatment, and

disposal of solid waste and all other waste management activities which

do not harm the environment;

Environmentally acceptable shall refer to the quality of being re-usable,

biodegradable or compostable, recyclable and not toxic or hazardous to

the environment;

Generation shall refer to the act or process of producing solid waste;

Generator shall refer to a person, natural or juridical, who last uses a

material and makes it available for disposal or recycling;

Hazardous waste shall refer to solid waste or combination of solid waste

which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical or

infectious characteristics may:

(1) ​ cause, or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality

or an increase in serious irreversible, or incapacitating reversible, illness;

or

(2) ​ pose a substantial present or potential hazard to human

health or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported,

or disposed of, or otherwise managed;

Leachate shall refer to the liquid produced when waste undergo

decomposition, and when water percolate through solid waste

undergoing decomposition. It is contaminated liquid that contains

dissolved and suspended materials;

Materials recovery facility — includes a solid waste transfer station or

sorting station, drop-off center, a composting facility, and a recycling

facility;

Municipal waste shall refer to wastes produced from activities within

local government units which include a combination of domestic,

commercial, institutional and industrial wastes and street litters;

Open dump shall refer to a disposal area wherein the solid wastes are

indiscriminately thrown or disposed of without due planning and

consideration for environmental and health standards;

Opportunity to recycle shall refer to the act of providing a place for

collecting source-separated recyclable material, located either at a

disposal site or at another location more convenient to the population

being served, and collection at least once a month of source-separated

recyclable material from collection service customers and to providing a

public education and promotion program that gives notice to each person

of the opportunity to recycle and encourage source separation of

recyclable material;
Post-consumer material shall refer only to those materials or products

generated by a business or consumer which have served their intended

end use, and which have been separated or diverted from solid waste for

the purpose of being collected, processed and used as a raw material in

the manufacturing of a recycled product, excluding materials and

by-products generated from, and commonly used within an original

manufacturing process, such as mill scrap;

Receptacles shall refer to individual containers used for the source

separation and the collection of recyclable materials;

Recovered material shall refer to material and by-products that have

been recovered or diverted from solid waste for the purpose of being

collected, processed and used as a raw material in the manufacture of a

recycled product;

Recyclable material shall refer to any waste material retrieved from the

waste stream and free from contamination that can still be converted into

suitable beneficial use or for other purposes, including, but not limited to,

newspaper, ferrous scrap metal, non-ferrous scrap metal, used oil,

corrugated cardboard, aluminum, glass, office paper, tin cans and other

materials as may be determined by the Commission;

Recycled material shall refer to post-consumer material that has been

recycled and returned to the economy;

Recycling shall refer to the treating of used or waste materials through a

process of making them suitable for beneficial use and for other

purposes, and includes any process by which solid waste materials are

transformed into new products in such a manner that the original

products may lose their identity, and which may be used as raw materials

for the production of other goods or services: Provided, That the

collection, segregation and re-use of previously used packaging material

shall be deemed recycling under this Act;

Resource conservation shall refer to the reduction of the amount of solid

waste that are generated or the reduction of overall resource

consumption, and utilization of recovered resources;

Resource recovery shall refer to the collection, extraction or recovery of

recyclable materials from the waste stream for the purpose of recycling,

generating energy or producing a product suitable for beneficial use:

Provided, That, such resource recovery facilities exclude incineration;

​ Re-use shall refer to the process of recovering materials intended

for the same or different purpose without the alteration of physical and

chemical characteristics;

Sanitary landfill shall refer to a 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;

Schedule of Compliance shall refer to an enforceable sequence of

actions or operations to be accomplished within a stipulated time frame

leading to compliance with a limitation, prohibition, or standard set forth

in this Act or any rule or regulation issued pursuant thereto;

Segregation shall refer to a 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;

Segregation at source shall refer to a solid waste management practice

of separating, at the point of origin, 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;

Solid waste shall refer to all discarded household, commercial waste,

non-hazardous institutional and industrial waste, street sweepings,

construction debris, agricultural waste, and other

non-hazardous/non-toxic solid waste.

Unless specifically noted otherwise, the term “solid waste” as used in this

Act shall not include:

(1) ​ waste identified or listed as hazardous waste of a solid,

liquid, contained gaseous or semi-solid form which may cause or

contribute to an increase in mortality or in serious or incapacitating

reversible illness, or acute/chronic effect on the health of persons and

other organisms;

(2) ​ infectious waste from hospitals such as equipment,

instruments, utensils, and fomites of a disposable nature from patients

who are suspected to have or have been diagnosed as having

communicable diseases and must therefore be isolated as required by

public health agencies, laboratory wastes such as pathological specimens

(i.e., all tissues, specimens of blood elements, excreta, and secretions

obtained from patients or laboratory animals), and disposable fomites

that may harbor or transmit pathogenic organisms, and surgical

operating room pathologic specimens and disposable fomites attendant

thereto, and similar disposable materials from outpatient areas and

emergency rooms; and

(3) ​ waste resulting from mining activities, including

contaminated soil and debris.

Solid waste management shall refer to the discipline associated with the

control of generation, storage, collection, transfer and transport,

processing, and disposal of solid wastes in a manner that is in accord with

the best principles of public health, economics, engineering, conservation,

aesthetics, and other environmental considerations, and that is also

responsive to public attitudes;

​ Solid waste management facility shall refer to any resource

recovery system or component thereof; any system, program, or facility

for resource conservation; any facility for the collection, source

separation, storage, transportation, transfer, processing, treatment, or

disposal of solid waste;

Source reduction shall refer to the reduction of solid waste before it

enters the solid waste stream by methods such as product design,

materials substitution, materials re-use and packaging restrictions;

Source separation shall refer to the sorting of solid waste into some or all

of its component parts at the point of generation;

Special wastes shall refer to household hazardous wastes such as paints,

thinners, household batteries, lead-acid batteries, spray canisters and the

like. These include wastes from residential and commercial sources that

comprise of bulky wastes, consumer electronics, white goods, yard wastes

that are collected separately, batteries, oil, and tires. These wastes are

usually handled separately from other residential and commercial wastes;

Storage shall refer to the interim containment of solid waste after

generation and prior to collection for ultimate recovery or disposal;

Transfer stations shall refer to those facilities utilized to receive solid

wastes, temporarily store, separate, convert, or otherwise process the

materials in the solid wastes, or to transfer the solid wastes directly from

smaller to larger vehicles for transport. This term does not include any of

the following:

(1) ​ a facility whose principal function is to receive, store,

separate, convert, or otherwise process in accordance with national

minimum standards, manure;

(2) ​ a facility, whose principal function is to receive, store,

convert, or otherwise process wastes which have already been separated

for re-use and are not intended for disposal; and

(3) ​ the operations premises of a duly licensed solid waste

handling operator who receives, stores, transfers, or otherwise processes

wastes as an activity incidental to the conduct of a refuse collection and

disposal business.

Waste diversion shall refer to activities which reduce or eliminate the

amount of solid waste from waste disposal facilities;

White goods shall refer to large worn-out or broken household,

commercial, and industrial appliances such as stoves, refrigerators,

dishwashers, and clothes washers and dryers collected separately. White

goods are usually dismantled for the recovery of specific materials (e.g.,

copper, aluminum, etc.); and

Yard waste shall refer to wood, small or chipped branches, leaves, grass

clippings, garden debris, vegetable residue that is recognizable as part of

a plant or vegetable and other materials identified by the Commission.

National Solid Waste Management Commission is composed of 14

members from the government sector and 3 from private sector.

Representatives from the NGOs, recycling and manufacturing or

packaging industries shall be nominated through a process designed by

themselves and shall be appointed by the President for a term of three (3)

years.

Department Secretary and a private sector representative of the

Commission shall serve as chairman and vice chairman, respectively

Powers and Functions of the Commission. — The Commission shall

oversee the implementation of solid waste management plans and

prescribe policies to achieve the objectives of this Act. The Commission

shall undertake the following activities:

(a) ​ Prepare the national solid waste management framework;

(b) ​ Approve local solid waste management plans in accordance

with its rules and regulations;

(c) ​ Review and monitor the implementation of local solid waste

management plans;

(d) ​ Coordinate the operation of local solid waste management

boards in the provincial and city/municipal levels;

(e) ​ To the maximum extent feasible, utilizing existing resources,

assist provincial, city and municipal solid waste management boards in

the preparation, modification, and implementation of waste management

plans;

(f) ​ Develop a model provincial, city and municipal solid waste

management plan that will establish prototypes of the content and

format which provinces, cities and municipalities may use in meeting the

requirements of the National Solid Waste Management Framework;

(g) ​ Adopt a program to provide technical and other capability

building assistance and support to local government units in the

development and implementation of source reduction programs;

(h) ​ Develop and implement a program to assist local government

units in the identification of markets for materials that are diverted from

disposal facilities through re-use, recycling, and composting, and other

environment-friendly methods;
(i) ​ Develop a mechanism for the imposition of sanctions for the

violation of environmental rules and regulations;

(j) ​ Manage the Solid Waste Management Fund;

(k) ​ Develop and prescribe procedures for the issuance of

appropriate permits and clearances;

(l) ​ Review the incentives scheme for effective solid waste

management, for purposes of ensuring relevance and efficiency in

achieving the objectives of this Act;

(m) ​ Formulate the necessary education promotion and

information campaign strategies;

(n) ​ Establish, after notice and hearing of the parties concerned,

standards, criteria, guidelines and formula that are fair, equitable and

reasonable, in establishing tipping charges and rates that the proponent

will charge in the operation and management of solid waste management

facilities and technologies;

(o) ​ Develop safety nets and alternative livelihood programs for

small recyclers and other sectors that will be affected as a result of the

construction and/or operation of a solid waste management recycling

plant or facility;
(p) ​ Formulate and update a list of non-environmentally

acceptable materials in accordance with the provisions of this Act. For

this purpose, it shall be necessary that proper consultation be conducted

by the Commission with all concerned industries to ensure a list that is

based on technological and economic viability;

(q) ​ Encourage private sector initiatives, community participation

and investments resource recovery-based livelihood programs for local

communities;

(r) ​ Encourage all local government agencies and all local

government units to patronize products manufactured using recycled and

recyclable materials;

(s) ​ Propose and adopt regulations requiring the source

separation and post separation collection, segregated collection,

processing, marketing and sale of organic and designated recyclable

material generated in each local government unit; and

(t) ​ Study and review the following:

(i) ​ Standards, criteria and guidelines for the promulgation and

implementation of an integrated national solid waste management

framework; and
(ii) ​ Criteria and guidelines for siting, design, operation and

maintenance of solid waste management facilities.

The Commission shall meet at least once a month

Role of LGUs in Solid Waste Management. — Pursuant to the relevant

provisions of R.A. No. 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government

Code, the LGUs shall be primarily responsible for the implementation and

enforcement of the provisions of this Act within their respective

jurisdictions.

Segregation and collection of solid waste shall be conducted at the

barangay level specifically for biodegradable, compostable and reusable

wastes: Provided, That the collection of non-recyclable materials and

special wastes shall be the responsibility of the municipality or city.

Provincial Solid Waste Management Board. — A Provincial Solid Waste

Management Board shall be established in every province, to be chaired

by the governor. Its members shall include:

(a) ​ All the mayors of its component cities and municipalities;

(b) ​ One (1) representative from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan

to be represented by the chairperson of either the Committees on

Environment or Health or their equivalent committees, to be nominated

by the presiding officer;

(c) ​ The provincial health and/or general services officers,

whichever may be recommended by the governor;

(d) ​ The provincial environment and natural resources officer;

(e) ​ The provincial engineer;

(f) ​ Congressional representative/s from each congressional

district within the province;

(g) ​ A representative from the NGO sector whose principal

purpose is to promote recycling and the protection of air and water

quality;

(h) ​ A representative from the recycling industry;

(i) ​ A representative from the manufacturing or packaging

industry; and

(j) ​ A representative of each concerned government agency

possessing relevant technical and marketing expertise as may be

determined by the Board.

The Provincial Solid Waste Management Board may, from time to time,

call on any other concerned agencies or sectors as it may deem

necessary.
Provided, That representatives from the NGOs, recycling and

manufacturing or packaging industries shall be selected through a

process designed by themselves and shall be endorsed by the government

agency representatives of the Board: Provided, further, That in the

Province of Palawan, the Board shall be chaired by the chairman of the

Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, pursuant to Republic Act

No. 7611.

In the case of Metro Manila, the Board shall be chaired by the chairperson

of the MMDA and its members shall include:

(i) ​ All mayors of its component cities and municipalities;

(ii) ​ A representative from the NGO sector whose principal

purpose is to promote recycling and the protection of air and water

quality;

(iii) ​ A representative from the recycling industry; and

(iv) ​ A representative from the manufacturing or packaging

industry.

The Provincial Solid Waste Management Board shall have the

following functions and responsibilities:

(1) ​ Develop a provincial solid waste management plan from the

submitted solid waste management plans of the respective city and

municipal solid waste management boards herein created. It shall review

and integrate the submitted plans of all its component cities and

municipalities and ensure that the various plans complement each other,

and have the requisite components. The Provincial Solid Waste

Management Plan shall be submitted to the Commission for approval.

The Provincial Plan shall reflect the general program of action and

initiatives of the provincial government in implementing a solid waste

management program that would support the various initiatives of its

component cities and municipalities.

(2) ​ Provide the necessary logistical and operational support to

its component cities and municipalities in consonance with subsection (f)

of Sec. 17 of the Local Government Code;

(3) ​ Recommend measures and safeguards against pollution and

for the preservation of the natural ecosystem;

(4) ​ Recommend measures to generate resources, funding and

implementation of projects and activities as specified in the duly

approved solid waste management plans;

(5) ​ Identify areas within its jurisdiction which have common solid

waste management problems and are appropriate units for planning local

solid waste management services in accordance with Section 41 hereof;

(6) ​ Coordinate the efforts of the component cities and

municipalities in the implementation of the Provincial Solid Waste

Management Plan;

(7) ​ Develop an appropriate incentive scheme as an integral

component of the Provincial Solid Waste Management Plan;

(8) ​ Convene joint meetings of the provincial, city and municipal

solid waste management boards at least every quarter for purposes of

integrating, synchronizing, monitoring and evaluating the development

and implementation of its provincial solid waste management plan;

(9) ​ Represent any of its component city or municipality in

coordinating its resource and operational requirements with agencies of

the national government;

(10) ​ Oversee the implementation of the Provincial Solid Waste

Management Plan;

(11) ​ Review every two (2) years or as the need arises the

Provincial Solid Waste Management Plan for purposes of ensuring its

sustainability, viability, effectiveness and relevance in relation to local

and international developments in the field of solid waste management;

and
(12) ​ Allow for the clustering of LGUs for the solution of common

solid waste management problems.

City and Municipal Solid Waste Management Board. — Each city or

municipality shall form a City or Municipal Waste Management Board that

shall prepare, submit and implement a plan for the safe and sanitary

management of solid waste generated in areas under its geographic and

political coverage.

The City or Municipal Solid Waste Management Board shall be

composed of the city or municipal mayor as head with the following

as members:

(a) ​ One (1) representative of the Sangguniang Panlungsod or the

Sangguniang Bayan, preferably chairpersons of either the Committees on

Environment or Health, who will be designated by the presiding officer;

(b) ​ President of the Association of Barangay Councils in the

municipality or city;

(c) ​ Chairperson of the Sangguniang Kabataan Federation;

(d) ​ A representative from NGOs whose principal purpose is to

promote recycling and the protection of air and water quality;

(e) ​ A representative from the recycling industry;

(f) ​ A representative from the manufacturing or packaging

industry; and

(g) ​ A representative of each concerned government agency

possessing relevant technical and marketing expertise as may be

determined by the Board.

The City and Municipal Solid Waste Boards shall have the following

duties and responsibilities:

(1) ​ Develop the City or Municipal Solid Waste Management Plan

that shall ensure the long-term management of solid waste, as well as

integrate the various solid waste management plans and strategies of the

barangays in its area of jurisdiction. In the development of the Solid

Waste Management Plan, it shall conduct consultations with the various

sectors of the community;

(2) ​ Adopt measures to promote and ensure the viability and

effective implementation of solid waste management programs in its

component barangays;

(3) ​ Monitor the implementation of the City or Municipal Solid

Waste Management Plan through its various political subdivisions and in

cooperation with the private sector and the NGOs;

(4) ​ Adopt specific revenue-generating measures to promote the

viability of its Solid Waste Management Plan;

(5) ​ Convene regular meetings for purposes of planning and

coordinating the implementation of the solid waste management plans of

the respective component barangays;

(6) ​ Oversee the implementation of the City or Municipal Solid

Waste Management Plan;

(7) ​ Review every two (2) years or as the need arises the City or

Municipal Solid Waste Management Plan for purposes of ensuring its

sustainability, viability, effectiveness and relevance in relation to local

and international developments in the field of solid waste management;

(8) ​ Develop the specific mechanics and guidelines for the

implementation of the City or Municipal Solid Waste Management Plan;

(9) ​ Recommend to appropriate local government authorities

specific measures or proposals for franchise or build-operate-transfer

agreements with duly recognized institutions, pursuant to R.A. 6957, to

provide either exclusive or non-exclusive authority for the collection,

transfer, storage, processing, recycling or disposal of municipal solid

waste. The proposals shall take into consideration appropriate

government rules and regulations on contracts, franchises and

build-operate-transfer agreements;
(10) ​ Provide the necessary logistical and operational support to

its component cities and municipalities in consonance with subsection (f)

of Sec. 17 of the Local Government Code;

(11) ​ Recommend measures and safeguards against pollution and

for the preservation of the natural ecosystem; and

(12) ​ Coordinate the efforts of its component barangays in the

implementation of the city or municipal Solid Waste Management Plan.