Good day!

It has come to our attention that our university is not compliant of the laws governing solid waste management. There are two points that we, the students, would like to draw. First, the university does not have adequate trash bins considering the area and population of the university. In the Arts and Sciences Building, only the lobby has the complete set of paired trash bins(biodegradable and non-biodegradable) while in the succeeding floors, only one small bin is stationed near the stairs or they have no trash bins at all. This makes the implementation of segregation very difficult. The students throw their trash indiscriminately to a trash bin just o dispose of the trash they carry with them. Consequently, there is a high probability that the garbage collected from the bins will not be purely biodegradable or non-biodegradable. In addition to that, the size of the trash bins become a problem when the bin is full and the students have nowhere to throw their trash. Thus the purpose of the biodegradable and non-biodegradable trash bins, which is to facilitate the easy flow of segregation in the campus, is defeated. Moreover, the students under the Biology program is experiencing this problem especially in their laboratory where broken glass, used surgical gloves and other residual waste that is potentially dangerous to the health and safety of the students. Second, there have been reports of open burning of leaves and stray plastics inside the campus premises. The burning of these waste matters is not beneficial for the students or the environment. Open burning has a significant effect on the ambient air quality and will consequently affect the health of the students and the faculty members in the university. Because of the dust and harmful gasses that are emitted by open burning, students and faculty are more susceptible to diseases like chronic bronchitis and asthma. Both of the offenses aforementioned are in direct violation of RA 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. It is stated in RA 9003 Chapter VI Section 49 that the open burning of solid waste is punishable with a fine of not less than Three hundred pesos (P300.00) but not more than One thousand pesos (P1,000.00) or imprisonment of not less than one (1) day to not more than fifteen (15) days, or both; while the dumping of waste matters in public places is punishable with a fine of not less than Three hundred pesos (P300.00) but not more than One thousand pesos (P1,000.00) or render community service for not less than one (1) day to not more than fifteen (15) days to an LGU where such prohibited acts are committed, or both. Therefore, we petition for the universitys Environmental Committee to make these steps as a signal that UP Cebu will become a university that is cleaner and healthier for the students: a. The university should provide each floor of each building with medium-sized biodegradable and non-biodegradable trash bins; However, if the university cannot provide the students with a larger trash receptacle, the collection of the

trash in each floor should be done twice daily in order for the students to be able to make use of the receptacles in the afternoon. b. The university should consider composting as an alternative instead of open burning of the leaves. c. Moreover, the university should consider collecting recyclable materials that can be given to Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) in te nearby area to be recycled.

Thank you!