ILOILO City — The city government is considering installing closed-circuit television cameras along the Iloilo River to catch illegal waste dischargers after days of inspections failed to identify the source of oil and grease pollution discovered in the waterway.
Mayor Raisa Treñas said the proposed surveillance system would help authorities determine where pollutants come from, identify those responsible and establish what types of waste are being dumped into the river.
The proposal follows the discovery on July 22 of a thick layer of oil and grease — locally described as “sebo” — floating on a section of the river near Diversion Road.
The General Services Office (GSO), City Environment and Natural Resources Office and City Agriculture Office, which help manage and oversee the river, are studying the proposed camera installation. Treñas did not give a definite timeline for its implementation.
The city inspected establishments near the river from July 29 to 31 as part of intensified efforts to trace the contamination.
Inspection teams examined the grease traps, wastewater disposal systems and other facilities of hotels, restaurants and commercial establishments that could have contributed to the pollution.
GSO head Engineer Neil Ravena said the establishments cooperated fully with the investigation.
“We appreciate the cooperation of the hotels and restaurants. None of them refused the inspection or prevented our team from entering. They allowed us to inspect their grease traps and wastewater management systems so we could verify whether there was any possible source of contamination,” Ravena said.
However, the teams found neither environmental violations nor evidence directly linking any of the inspected businesses to the contamination.
“Based on our inspections so far, we have not found any violations. The establishments we inspected appear to be complying with the required environmental standards, and we did not discover anything that would directly connect them to the incident,” he said.
Treñas said restaurants should have functional grease traps and sewage treatment plants to prevent oil, grease and other waste from reaching the river.
She stressed that surveillance and government inspections alone would not be enough without responsible waste management by businesses and residents.
“Damo kita measures nga gina-try to apply to make sure nga mabantayan naton but at the end of the day, gina-encourage ta gid ang aton nga mga negosyo along Iloilo River and all over the Iloilo City nga ang aton sometimes nga problem nga gina-atubang manmade,” Treñas said.
The mayor cited flooding as another problem often aggravated by human activities and urged the public to recognize its responsibility in protecting the city.
“We have to be responsible para sa kaayuhan sang tanan kag sa kaayuhan sang syudad,” she added.
Treñas said she had yet to receive an updated report from the inspection team regarding its continuing investigation.
The GSO is expected to inspect more commercial establishments and nearby areas until authorities trace the source of the pollutants, prevent a similar incident and protect the Iloilo River./PN
