Environmental groups are alleging that a second lot of containers full of Canadian waste have been shipped to the Philippines and left abandoned at the Port of Manila. The allegations were prompted by a leaked document from the Philippines Bureau of Customs.
According to Philippines news reports citing an anonymous customs official, 48 containers full of household waste arrived between December 2013 and January 2014.
“There has been no inspection yet. The shipment is for abandonment since it has been there for a long time,” the official told the Manila Bulletin.
A June 3 email from the Department of Foreign Affairs says Canada “has not received any confirmation from the Government of the Philippines about the supposed shipment.”
The containers are similar to 50 shipped to Manila in the spring and summer of 2013 by Ontario-based company Chronic Inc. that were declared as containing plastics for recycling. After the giant containers had sat at the port for months, officials opened them only to find a mixture of plastics and stinking household garbage, including used adult diapers.
At the time, a customs official said the contents “could pose biohazard risks for our people.”
