Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Monday April 29, 2019
Canada working with Philippines for ‘timely resolution’ of waste issue
Canada on Wednesday expressed its commitment in collaborating with the Philippines to address the dumping of waste in the country.
The Canadian Embassy in Manila released a statement a day after President Rodrigo Duterte warned the North American country that he would be sailing to Canada to dump their trash back.
“I want a boat prepared. I’ll give a warning to Canada maybe next week that they better pull that thing out or I will set sail, there in Canada, I will dump their trash there,” Duterte said in Pampanga on Tuesday.
The Canadian Embassy said a joint technical working group composed of officials from both Canada and the Philippines has been looking into the issues surrounding the removal of the waste in the country “with a view to a timely resolution.”
“In 2016, Canada amended its regulations around hazardous waste shipments to prevent such events from happening again,” the Canadian Embassy said in a statement.
Canada vowed to work with the Philippines in ensuring that the waste shipment will be “processed in an environmentally responsible way.”
In 2017, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country was committed to addressing the issue of waste from Canada that was shipped to the Philippines.
More than 100 container vans of garbage arrived in the Philippines between 2013 to 2014.
“I committed to him (Duterte) as much as I am committing to you that Canada is working hard to resolve the issue,” Trudeau said on the sidelines of the 2017 ASEAN Summit in Manila. (Source: PhilStar)