THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Tuesday held the first ever stakeholders meeting in preparation for the rehabilitation of Manila Bay.
The meeting gathered around 200 representatives from various national government agencies and local government units (LGUs), including barangay units.
Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu said the Duterte administration is determined to rehabilitate the Manila Bay and will not hesitate to file appropriate charges against violators of various environmental laws.
The massive rehabilitation will affect establishments along a 194-kilometer coastline from Cavite to Bataan; a total of 128 local government units in eight provinces in Regions 3, 4-A and the National Capital Region.
At a news conference after the stakeholders’ meeting, Cimatu vowed to come up with a list of violators of various environmental laws, particularly Republic Act 9275 or the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.
The DENR chief was tasked by President Duterte to lead the massive rehabilitation of Manila Bay following the successful rehabilitation of Boracay Island, the country’s top tourist destination in Malay, Aklan last year.
The country’s chief steward of the environment and natural resources said a draft executive order creating the task force and outlining its mandate will still be submitted to Malacañang for the purpose of bringing back Manila Bay back to its former glory.
Aside from the 13 mandamus agencies, which have been ordered by the Supreme Court to rehabilitate Manila Bay, the Department of Tourism (DOT) will play its part in the rehabilitation effort.
According to Cimatu, the DENR will announce to the public the result of a still ongoing water sampling and laboratory testing in various esteros to determine the coliform level and would work on those so-called “millionaire esteros,” or whose coliform level exceed a million most probably number per 100 liter, starting in the Bay Walk area of Manila Bay in Manila, particularly the areas between the Manila Yacht Club and the US Embassy, which, he said, is the area most visited by tourists.
He said the coliform level in the area is a priority as he vowed to identify establishments that discharge their untreated wastewater in three creeks that drain in the area.
The DENR chief said establishments found violating the Clean Water Act will be charged for specific violations, such as the direct discharge of untreated wastewater, the same way erring establishments in Boracay were dealt with by the DENR.
According to Cimatu, compared to Boracay, rehabilitating Manila Bay is a much bigger challenge, whether in terms of water-pollution level or coastal area to be rehabilitated, explaining why the Manila Bay rehabilitation will take time and a huge amount of money.
Compared to Boracay, which has an area of 1,000 hectares, Manila Bay coastline is approximately 190 kilometers from Cavite to Bataan, he said.
In terms of water pollution, he said, when President Duterte tagged Boracay a “cesspool,” the coliform level is about 1 million most probable number/100 milliliters, while in Manila Bay, the highest was about 333 million MPN/100 ml.
“This is 333 times worse than Boracay,” he said.
According to Cimatu, the DENR, particularly the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), may revoke the environmental compliance certificates of noncompliant or defiant establishments, particularly those who will not put up their own sewage treatment plants.
Adjust targets
MEANWHILE, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System Administrator Reynaldo Velasco said he will meet with Maynilad and Manila Water, MWSS private water concessionaires, to discuss the possibility of stepping up their compliance of the Supreme Court continuing mandamus on Manila Bay.
The MWSS chief said he will ask Maynilad and Manila Water to adjust their targets to fast track the connection of sewer lines by reviewing and adjusting targets for the years 2022 to 2037.
As agent and contractor of the MWSS, Maynilad and Manila Water are mandated to connect their customers to the sewer line and ensure treatment of wastewater.
But according to the DENR, less than 15 percent of water consumers are connected to proper sewer lines, although both companies are offering free desludging.
Velasco wants Maynilad and Manila Water to ensure 100-percent connection before 2037.
Squatter relocation ‘a must’
“THIS will be a continuing process. We will be making some announcement on the 27th as a result of the wastewater tests from the EMB and the LLDA [Laguna Lake Development Authority],” Cimatu said.
Aside from addressing water pollution in Manila Bay, Cimatu said the rehabilitation will involve the massive rehabilitation of mangrove and beach forests, including the Las Piñas-Parañaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area.
Asked if the interagency body will also look into various reclamation projects along Manila Bay that are in the pipeline, Cimatu said: “Yes. As a matter of fact, it will be part of the process [review of reclamation projects],” he said.
Cimatu said a major challenge faced by the government concerns raised by LGUs during the meeting involves the informal settlers living along Manila Bay coasts, particularly in Cavite and Bataan.
The DENR chief said the interagency task force will prioritize areas that are visibly problematic, or areas that are the subject of various complaints, such as in Bacoor and other coastal areas in Cavite, which have a huge number of informal settlers who would have to be resettled.
In Pampanga, he said, several piggeries would have to be resettled or moved away from rivers and water bodies.
“These informal settlers would have to be resettled away from Manila Bay,” the DENR chief said.
Meanwhile, Secretary Eduardo M. Año assured that the resettlement of informal settlers will be carefully planned.
The DILG chief said informal settler governance will be implemented together with concerned LGUs.
“We will make sure that the relocation areas have water and electricity,” he added.
For her part, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said they will hold talks with tourism-related establishments, starting in the National Capital Region to inform them of possible violations.
“We will not issue accreditation if they will not be compliant,” the DOT chief said.
She added that some establishments may be unaware of their violation, explaining why the DOT will hold a meeting with owners and managers of hotels and restaurants per area in the next few days.
“We want to inform them if they have a violation, and we will give them time to comply. Otherwise, we will not give them accreditation,” she said.
Image credits: Nonoy Lacza