Marcos calls garbage problem ‘critical,’ cites new flood control strategies

Abi Sarabia M., Philippine Canadian Inquirer
August 13, 2026

Photo courtesy: Philippine News Agency

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the Philippines’ garbage problem should not be described as a crisis, but called it “critical,” as the government studies additional strategies to address recurring flooding and considers waste-to-energy plants as part of its solid waste management plans.

Marcos said the administration’s work to reduce flooding covers the entire country, not just Metro Manila, and that solutions differ depending on each area’s specific problem.

“So patuloy lang ang ating trabaho para mabawas-bawasan ang baha dito sa… hindi lamang sa Metro Manila, lahat ng buong Pilipinas. At iba-iba ang sagot, hindi naman pare-pareho ang problema, iba-iba ‘yung sagot,” Marcos said. 

[Our work to reduce flooding continues here… not just in Metro Manila, but across the entire Philippines. And the solutions vary, because the problems are not the same everywhere.]

He cited the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) as an example, noting that its terrain makes flood control solutions more difficult to design.

“Nakita naman ninyo ‘yung sa CAR, eh ‘yun talaga ‘yung terrain doon, mahirap talaga ang terrain doon para magawan ng solusyon ang flood control. But we will continue to study. We have already some very good studies that we are basing our initiatives on and our strategies on,” he said. 

[You can see in CAR, the terrain there makes it really difficult to come up with a flood control solution.]

Aside from ongoing flood control projects, Marcos said the government would work to recover funds that would be allocated for the proper operation of flood control facilities. He did not provide further details on the scope or source of these funds.

As part of the administration’s approach to the garbage problem, Marcos said the government is looking into establishing waste-to-energy plants to process garbage and convert it into energy.

“Now, what we are trying to do is to put the system together, where the… how it will be, what is the relationship of the LGUs to the waste-to-energy plant, where the locations are, what group is actually going to come in. We already have identified,” Marcos said, without elaborating further.

The president’s remarks touched on the relationship between local government units (LGUs) and prospective waste-to-energy plant operators, including plant locations and the groups that would be involved in running them, though he did not specify which areas or organizations have already been identified.