Canada is set to ship back its containers of trash at its own expense on Thursday, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Wednesday.

"I have just been informed that the Canadian trash will finally be shipped back to Canada tomorrow," said Guevarra, who is the officer-in-charge while President Rodrigo Duterte is on a four-day trip to Japan.

Guevarra said the cost of shipment is estimated at P10 million.

"The cost of reshipment from Manila to Vancouver, estimated at Php10 millon, will be shouldered by the Canadian government," he said.

Guevarra said the container vans would be loaded on vessels owned by three shipping companies.

Duterte initially warned to declare war against Canada if it would not act immediately to take back its tons of wastes, which arrived in the country in batches in 2013 to 2014.

When Canada failed to meet the May 15 deadline, Duterte ordered the concerned government agency to look for a shipping company that would send the trash back to Canada.

Canada earlier set to complete the retrieval of the garbage by the end of June. But the Philippine government rejected this. Celerina Monte/DMS