Trapped Methane Gas Under Paved-Over Dump Site Could Trigger Blast
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Manila, Philippines (AHN) - More than 100,000 people living on a paved-over site of the former dump, known as the infamous "Smokey Mountain," are facing the risk of a possible methane blast due to the rotting garbage under their homes. Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Angelo Reyes issued a warning on Tuesday as he admitted that the government made an error when it built the 21-medium-rise buildings, after shutting down the garbage dump in 1990. The Philippine Daily Inquirer says Reyes was quoting environmental experts who informed him that the huge amounts of methane trapped underground could explode and destroy lives and property. An estimated 30,000 families or roughly 150,000 people are living in the housing community built on the site. He said, "What is most important is the welfare of the people. We have to tell the people of these new developments. We could not sit here and allow them to have cancer or just die suddenly in a methane explosion." Reyes said this error should be immediately corrected. The site was named "Smokey Mountain" after heavy clouds of methane rose above it when it was used as a garbage dump. It is now a tourist attraction and is a symbol of the abject poverty in the Philippines.
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