The City of Pines was declared a calamity area last July 2008 due to people’s garbage mishandling and the local government’s garbage mismanagement. The Irisan Dumpsite where B
aguio used to dump its garbage has been closed due to the demands of residents living within the vicinity. They have been subjected to health hazard due to foul smell caused by inconsiderate mishandling of garbage dumped within the the land fill. Piles of garbage were found everywhere you go within the vicinity of the city. It was like having the SARS virus scare again with people wearing gauze mask and handkerchief stuck to their noses to avoid smelling stinking garbage threatening them with diseases. Baguio for days was tagged as the “garbage capital” of the Philippines, a transformed city that used to be a paradise. Baguio had won four consecutive titles as the cleanest and greenest highly urbanized city in the 1990s, earning it the pioneer hall of fame title in its category.
aguio used to dump its garbage has been closed due to the demands of residents living within the vicinity. They have been subjected to health hazard due to foul smell caused by inconsiderate mishandling of garbage dumped within the the land fill. Piles of garbage were found everywhere you go within the vicinity of the city. It was like having the SARS virus scare again with people wearing gauze mask and handkerchief stuck to their noses to avoid smelling stinking garbage threatening them with diseases. Baguio for days was tagged as the “garbage capital” of the Philippines, a transformed city that used to be a paradise. Baguio had won four consecutive titles as the cleanest and greenest highly urbanized city in the 1990s, earning it the pioneer hall of fame title in its category.There are approximately around 300,000 people living in Baguio, and still adding up. A city designed by its American founders for approximately 30,000 inhabitants to enjoy its cool climate and wonderful fauna, Baguio has transformed from a small city into a metropolis where races from different nations converge for education and business as well. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of local and foreign tourist and students that flock to the city, tripling the population during its peak season. Increase in population proportionately increases the volume of garbage produced. 
Unsegregated garbage has caused an alarming issue that needs to be addressed immediately. Baguio City’s image as the cleanest and greenest City in the Philippines have been tainted due to garbage mishandling. Baguio City spent around 12,000,000 pesos to 15,000,000 pesos a month last July and August and increased to 18,000,000 pesos a month from September and up to this writing, to deal with the increasing volume of garbage being produced by the city. Private haulers pick up garbage and brings it down to the Clark Integrated Waste Management Center at Capas, Tarlac for treatment and disposal. This system of garbage collection and disposal is draining the city’s budget. It should instead be used to set up more Materials Recovery Facility, or better yet, first support the Cluster L Cooperative MRF in Bakakeng Central and make it work more effective and efficient, it would be a good test before establishing more MRF stations in the city, or a centralized recycling plant for the city.
Unsegregated garbage has caused an alarming issue that needs to be addressed immediately. Baguio City’s image as the cleanest and greenest City in the Philippines have been tainted due to garbage mishandling. Baguio City spent around 12,000,000 pesos to 15,000,000 pesos a month last July and August and increased to 18,000,000 pesos a month from September and up to this writing, to deal with the increasing volume of garbage being produced by the city. Private haulers pick up garbage and brings it down to the Clark Integrated Waste Management Center at Capas, Tarlac for treatment and disposal. This system of garbage collection and disposal is draining the city’s budget. It should instead be used to set up more Materials Recovery Facility, or better yet, first support the Cluster L Cooperative MRF in Bakakeng Central and make it work more effective and efficient, it would be a good test before establishing more MRF stations in the city, or a centralized recycling plant for the city.
Team Bakakeng 
Team Bakakeng, (Martin Armieston Bay-an, Darmina Juli, Jackson Fermin, Renie S. Poyaoan and Fitz Murphy Quintin) was formed as a requirement for the subject Entrepreneurship 12, Countryside Entrepreneurship Development, and as an outreach project (Adopt a Barangay) of the Young Entrepreneurship Society (Y.E.S.) under the class of Miss Marife Posadas, SLU MME Department Head. This project requires each team assigned in different barangays in Baguio and Benguet to discuss among the beneficiaries the essence of entrepreneurship as a means of developing the barangay through entrepreneurship. Team Bakakeng spent around 40 hours visiting their adopted barangay and learning the process of how a Materials Recovery Facility operates. Cluster L Cooperative which is composed of Barangays Balacbac,, Sto. Tomas and Bakakeng Central had been formed along with 17 other cluster barangays, to deal with the unending problem on garbage in Baguio City. Barangay Bakakeng Central, headed by Punong Barangay Alicia Pacsi Dizon, spearheaded the first Materials Recovery Facility by a Cluster Cooperative which is the first step in implementing a long due law that needs to be imposed in every barangay in the Philippines. Republic Act 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, was signed into law on January 26, 2001. It is considered a broad-based and comprehensive approach to solid waste management. It involves segregation at source, segregated collection, storage, transfer, processing, treatment and disposal of solid waste.
Scheduled visits to Bakakeng Central Barangay and it’s Materials Recovery Facility, have taught the team the importance of exposing entrepreneurship students in developing the countryside as part of their training leading to social responsibility as future entrepreneurs . Frequent brain storming were conducted between the team and Punong Barangay Alicia P. Dizon regarding garbage issues. The Punong Barangay requested the team to assists Cluster L Cooperative in marketing its compost product and think of concepts regarding strategies in marketing and to come up with a brand name and logo design for its compost product.
In Our Own Small Ways The Materials Recovery Facility, operated at Barangay Bakakeng Central, is composed of 2 Rotary Happy Soil 
Composting Machine and a Hammer Mill that grinds biodegradable garbage. lt had been offered for demonstration purposes by a non-government organization and is now currently marketing Rich Earth Compost (brand name and logo design courtesy of the team). The team had been involved in the information dissemination drive of the cooperative regarding its vision and mission statement of ridding the barangay of garbage through segregation and proper waste management. The team printed flyers and posters that had been distributed in selected areas of the barangay. A letter sent by the team to Midland Courier was published and have caught the attention of Baguio’s populace. 
A tarpaulin sign designed by the team indicating Rich Earth Compost’s product launching set on the 25th of October was posted outside the Bakakeng Central’s barangay hall. Team Bakakeng and Rich Earth Compost participated during the Empowering Commercians through Research and Development trade fair and introducing Rich Earth Compost to Saint Louis University students and employees. Last October 25, 2008 Rich Earth Compost was finally launched in front of Bakakeng Central residents, barangay and city officials present during the general assembly of the barangay. Unfortunately, 
a power point presentation prepared by the team concerning garbage problem and MRF operation in Baguio and how an entrepreneurial approach could help a Materials Recovery Facility (M.R.F.) succeed was not presented due to lack of adequate facilities during the day of presentation. An extemporaneous presentation regarding garbage segregation, the cooperative and Republic Act 9003 as well as the launching of Rich Earth Compost was presented . Councilor Galo Weygan and Councilor Rocky Thomas Balisong personally acknowledged Saint Louis University’s involvement in helping with the drive against garbage problem in Baguio City.
As an institution with a vision to transform, Saint Louis University will continue supporting these kinds of endeavor. Its involvement in ridding Baguio from its unending problem on garbage will continue, a mission of transforming Baguio back as the cleanest and greenest city in the Philippines is well at hand.
Composting Machine and a Hammer Mill that grinds biodegradable garbage. lt had been offered for demonstration purposes by a non-government organization and is now currently marketing Rich Earth Compost (brand name and logo design courtesy of the team). The team had been involved in the information dissemination drive of the cooperative regarding its vision and mission statement of ridding the barangay of garbage through segregation and proper waste management. The team printed flyers and posters that had been distributed in selected areas of the barangay. A letter sent by the team to Midland Courier was published and have caught the attention of Baguio’s populace. 
A tarpaulin sign designed by the team indicating Rich Earth Compost’s product launching set on the 25th of October was posted outside the Bakakeng Central’s barangay hall. Team Bakakeng and Rich Earth Compost participated during the Empowering Commercians through Research and Development trade fair and introducing Rich Earth Compost to Saint Louis University students and employees. Last October 25, 2008 Rich Earth Compost was finally launched in front of Bakakeng Central residents, barangay and city officials present during the general assembly of the barangay. Unfortunately, 
a power point presentation prepared by the team concerning garbage problem and MRF operation in Baguio and how an entrepreneurial approach could help a Materials Recovery Facility (M.R.F.) succeed was not presented due to lack of adequate facilities during the day of presentation. An extemporaneous presentation regarding garbage segregation, the cooperative and Republic Act 9003 as well as the launching of Rich Earth Compost was presented . Councilor Galo Weygan and Councilor Rocky Thomas Balisong personally acknowledged Saint Louis University’s involvement in helping with the drive against garbage problem in Baguio City.As an institution with a vision to transform, Saint Louis University will continue supporting these kinds of endeavor. Its involvement in ridding Baguio from its unending problem on garbage will continue, a mission of transforming Baguio back as the cleanest and greenest city in the Philippines is well at hand.
* I wrote this article supposedly for publication in one of our school paper at the end of the first semester 2008, but I wonder what happened?
**** Almost 9 months have passed and yet the City government of Baguio is not acting that fast, not realizing the impending threat this problem might contribute to the city's status as the Summer Capital of the Philippines. I sense something fishy that it might be used by aspiring re-electionists for next year's election. It's just an opinion, though obvious as it is, the truth lyes on these premise.
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