ENVIRONMENT Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez has ordered the integration of biodiversity in the planning, implementation and monitoring of development projects and tenurial instruments issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
In Memorandum Circular on November 28, Lopez authorized the DENR’s Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) to create a team composed of biodiversity experts to participate in the mining audits, environmental impact assessment review and performance evaluation of tenurial instruments.
The circular is pursuant to Section 25 of the General Appropriations Act of 2016, Executive Order 578 on the implementation of the state policy on biological diversity and in support of DENR Administrative Order 2016-12 adopting the Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (PBSAP) 2015-2018.
Lopez, an environmental advocate, has declared her passion for biodiversity conservation and her commitment to protect the country’s rich biodiversity.
The DENR chief had earlier said “biodiversity is like gold” and “treasure”, which should be protected and conserved.
After her appointment as chief steward of the environment and natural resources, Lopez had already suspended 10 large-scale metallic mines and threatened to suspend 20 others for failing in environmental standards.
She also included biodiversity consideration among the mining-audit criteria in tightening the screws on mining.
To protect the country’s rich biodiversity, she declared watersheds and protected areas as “off limits” to mining and other destructive development projects.
Lopez, in an interview with the BusinessMirror, said officials of the DENR are working to use the Total Economic Value in assessing operating mines, underscoring the importance of the aesthetic beauty and economic services the environment provides.
The circular, which takes immediate effect was welcomed by DENR BMB chief, Director Theresa Mundita S. Lim.
“It strengthens our efforts in working for the development-, livelihood- and enterprise-related programs of the department to take into account the contribution of biological diversity in the sustainability of their programs,” Lim said.
Lim added that the order coming from the DENR chief “sends a stronger political signal that the department is serious in protecting the resource base or biodiversity, and the ecosystem services provided by biodiversity to ensure that the development projects and programs translate into sustainable benefits for the communities and the country.”
“We finally can start to harness and mainstream the richness and uniqueness of our biological resources and ecosystems for and into the economic development planning processes,” she added.
According to Lim, with the circular in place, the DENR-BMB is now authorized by highest level in the department to mobilize biodiversity partners and experts to support us in promoting the PBSAP and to work with development sector to build in biodiversity into their plans and programs.
Dismantle illegal structures in Laguna de Bay
Meanwhile, the DENR is scheduled to hold a dialogue with Laguna de Bay fish-cage and fish-pen operators as part of the plan to implement a moratorium on the issuance of business permits beginning January next year.
Environment Undersecretary Arturo Valdez, who also heads the National Anti-Environmental Crime Task Force that recently held demolition operations in a 13-hectare illegal fish pen in Laguna de Bay within the jurisdiction of Muntinlupa City, said the dialogue aims to reassure the government’s commitment to prioritize resource-poor fishermen’s access to the 90,000-hectare lake.
“The thrust there is to send the message that the DENR, under Secretary Lopez, will rationalize the lake and the bias will be for the fisherfolk to have access to their traditional fishing ground,” Valdez said in a statement.
“Secretary Lopez has made it very clear that the fisherfolk should enjoy the lake,” he said.
The lake’s carrying capacity allows up to only 9,000 hectares for aquaculture. However, fish pens and cages are occupying 12,375.18 hectares of the surface water, showing a total of 3,375 hectares of excess area for demolition.
Valdez believes, however that the actual area being occupied by fish-cage and fish-pen operators could be bigger.
“I would say it is more than that,” Valdez said. He vowed to intensify the dismantling of illegal structures this month to give enough time for the operators to harvest their bangus and tilapia.
Data from the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) show that there are a total of 1,018 registered or legitimate fish-pen and fish-cage operators in Laguna Lake, covering a total of 9,519 hectares. Of this number, 713 are fish-cage operators, while 305 are fish-pen operators.
Unregistered operators number to 2,261, occupying 2,856 hectares, LLDA said.
A total of 3,246 structures (both registered and unregistered) can be found in the lake area, consisting of 358 fish pens and 2,890 fish cages, which show a mix of corporations and individual owners. The LLDA has developed a map identifying areas for fish pens, fish cages, fish sanctuaries and open fishing, and navigational and barangay access lanes to facilitate the movement of people, goods and services within the lake.
To ensure the maintenance of open fishing ground, the LLDA has designated fish sanctuaries covering around 30,000 hectares in Muntinlupa City, 5,000 hectares in Jala-Jala and Talim Island in Rizal and Laguna Bay, and 127 hectares in Barangay Tabon, Binangonan, Rizal.