KITAKYUSHU CITY, Japan—An official of Japan Petroleum Energy Center (JPEC)’s Wakamatsu Environmental Research Institute said he is willing to spread a Japanese technique in the Philippines which makes use of microorganisms to treat household wastes following its replication in several areas in some parts of Luzon and the Visayas in the past few years.

JPEC deputy director Koji Takakura, in a briefing at the Wakamatsu Environmental Research Institute here, said most of the replication sites of the Takakura Method in the Philippines are currently concentrated in Negros provinces.

“The technique [is widely] used around Negros but may spread through [other Philippine] islands in the future,” Takakura said.

The Takakura Method, named after Mr. Takakura himself, is a simple method of treating household wastes using microorganisms and other raw materials readily available in a local area.

Each household is given a compost basket while a market – waste composting center is established in a town or city. The residents collect kitchen wastes and place them in compost baskets. These are brought to the waste composting centers and are mixed with seed compost. These will then be used as fertilizer.

“The compost technique utilizes native microorganisms present in the locality and other raw materials locally available. It can be produced locally and need not be exported,” Takakura said, adding that they conduct germination tests to ensure that the microorganisms used will be effective.

The method has been replicated in Bago City, Negros Occidental in 2008, in Bacolod and Talisay, both also located in Negros Occidental, as well as in Cebu City and Talisay City, Cebu; Cavite, and Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

“The compost - making technique uses low energy. It is simple and low cost. People only need to [shred] their food wastes to pieces and place them in a compost box. You just leave them for one day and they will be treated, nothing will remain,” Takakura explained. “There is hardly any smell, hardly any pests.” He added that it only takes 14 days to make compost compared to the usual 90 days.

The method was initiated in Surabaya City, Indonesia five years ago, and has also been replicated in Thailand. The method was capable of reducing the wastes generated in Surabaya City to 10 percent per day.

“We’ll make sure the number will increase in a short time,” Takakura said, adding that more efforts are being made to spread the technique in other Southeast Asian countries.