Cebu landfill tragedy: Group calls out operator over neglect of workers’ safety

CEBU, Philippines – The Philippine National Waste Workers Alliance (PNWWA) on Thursday, January 15, called out the management of the Binaliw landfill in Cebu City for neglecting the safety of its workers after a landslide in their facility left more than 20 people dead.

“This tragedy is not a mere accident nor a natural disaster. It is the tragic and foreseeable result of long-standing failures in solid waste management and chronic neglect of safety in landfill operations,” PNWWA said in a statement.

According to officials and rescuers, all victims at the landslide were workers and subcontractors of Prime Waste Solutions Cebu (PWSC), the operator of the Binaliw landfill and a subsidiary of billionaire Enrique Razon’s Prime Infrastructure Capital Incorporated. 

As of Thursday evening, January 15, 18 victims remain hospitalized, 25 people have died, while 11 remain missing at the landfill.

PNWWA, composed of 12 waste workers groups representing over a thousand waste workers across the country, highlighted that poorly managed and unsafe landfills have long posed serious risks to waste workers. The organization called for a transparent and independent probe into the causes of the landslide at the Binaliw landfill site.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ (DENR) Mines and Geosciences Bureau conducted a site investigation on January 9, reporting that the possible causes for the collapse ranged from periodic rainfall oversaturating the landfill, lapses in engineering considerations for the landfill stockpiles, to the landfill’s location.

In the wake of the collapse, the waste workers alliance called for the passage of the Magna Carta for Waste Workers, which remains pending in Congress via House Bill No. 6413 and Senate Bill No. 2636.

“Without the Magna Carta, waste workers will continue to face preventable risks, exploitation, and loss of life,” PNWWA stressed.

Persisting workplace hazards 

Much like PNWWA, the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) and the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development (IOHSAD) pointed out the unsafe working conditions and culpability of PWSC in the events that led to the landfill collapse.

“According to landfill worker Joey Boy Gealon, the incident occurred without warning. However, subsequent accounts indicate that concerns regarding the safety and stability of the landfill had been raised well before the tragedy,” IOHSAD said in a statement on January 11.

IOHSAD, citing observations from Cebu City Councilor Joel Garganera, stated that the landfill operator had been cutting into accumulated waste, reshaping the garbage pile over time, and extracting soil before stacking waste anew, resulting in unstable mounds. 

“These statements are consistent with workers’ accounts, including those shared by Gealon, that concerns over the growing height and condition of the landfill had been raised for years,” IOHSAD added.

The Binaliw landfill has been at the center of controversies even before the landslide. 

A 2024 Commission on Audit report found that the landfill had inadequate drainage and stormwater management, infestations of flies and rats, foul odor, and a potential leak in its treatment plant.

In July 2025, a Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office-led (CENRO) inspection revealed that PWSC conducted quarrying operations without a permit at the Binaliw landfill.

CTUHR stressed that the landfill collapse, the number of deaths, and the difficulty in rescuing the missing victims “exposed weaknesses” in the DENR and the Department of Labor and Employment’s monitoring of the enforcement of sanitation, environmental, and labor standards. 

“These also expose nothing less than the greed of Prime Integrated Water Solutions and Razon, who amassed huge profits but refused to uphold their workers’ right to a safe workplace,” CTUHR said in their January 11 statement. 

Both CTUHR and IOHSAD called on the country’s lawmakers to pass proposed amendments to the occupational safety and health law to better protect waste workers and hold employers to account for neglecting worker safety standards.

PWSC, in a statement sent to Rappler on Wednesday, January 14, said that they’re working with experts and authorities for a comprehensive investigation into the issue, adding that they have provided financial assistance and psychosocial services to the families of affected employees.

On Monday, January 12, the DENR in Central Visayas issued a cease and desist order against PWSC. – Rappler.com