The Provincial Government of Palawan inaugurated the P490 million Sewage and Solid Waste Treatment Plant (SSWTP) in Sitio Batbat, Barangay Villa Libertad, El Nido this morning, September 20, 2021.
Phase 1 of the project started in August 2018 where the construction already amounted to P264.6 million. And Phase 2 cost P256 million.
The cost for the entire project was shouldered by both the Local Government Unit (LGU) and the provincial government.
The PGP’s spent a total amount of P347.9 million or 71% which includes the engineering technical services, heavy equipment utilization, and land acquisition. While the LGU of El Nido spent P142.1 million or 29% funded by the Development Bank of the Philippines.
The SSWTP facility occupies 2.3 hectares of land and will cater to Barangays Buena Suerte, Maligaya, Masagana, and Corong-Corong.
It has 3 facilities; an administrative building, a control tower, a staff house, and the main treatment plant.
The project is designed to promote sustainable energy and treat both solid and water waste in a single facility.
It is able to clean 2,400 cubic meters of wastewater and 50 cubic meters of septage as well as solid wastes. The wastewater undergoes 6 stages before disposal while the solid waste produced can be used as agricultural fertilizers.
The methane gas that will power the whole facility is also generated by the SSWTP.
According to the Provincial Information Office, the SSWTP can generate power up to 240 KW which is equivalent to 20% of the power demand by the municipality.
The Infrastructure of Office of Palawan also known as Palawan Water under the provincial government created this project to address the lack of proper waste disposal in El Nido.