BUSINESS establishments found polluting Bacuit Bay face imminent closure as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) vowed to leave no stones unturned in rehabilitating beach resorts in El Nido, Palawan.
As such, the fate of Sea Jane Resto Bar in El Nido, Palawan, now hangs in the balance as the DENR Region 4B, or the Mimaropa region, investigates the establishment for allegedly directly discharging untreated wastewater to Bacuit Bay.
The DENR is now conducting a laboratory test on the effluent samples taken from the company’s septic tank. Should it fail to meet the water quality standards set by the DENR, the company will be ordered closed, officials of the DENR said.
On April 11, the DENR discovered that the restaurant’s sewage treatment facility was leaking through a large hole and was releasing black and foul-smelling liquid directly into El Nido’s Bacuit Bay.
The discovery was made through the ground penetrating radar (GPR) scanning led by a team from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau-Central and Mimaropa regional offices.
During the excavation, a portion at the beach area fronting Sea Jane Resto Bar was seen with black sand, indicating the potential source of the untreated discharge.
Filthy water gushed out when a park ranger from El Nido’s Protected Area Management Office dug deeper into the site using a shovel.
The backhoe from the municipal government of El Nido was used to continue the excavation, which later on revealed that the wastewater was indeed coming from a large opening underneath the flooring of the said establishment.
The owner of the establishment has committed to repairing their damaged septic tank.
Under the Clean Water Act, violators face a fine of up to P200,000 per day of violation, and with the issuance of a cease-and-desist order, the establishment may be ordered closed through the concerned local government unit (LGU).
“We have to stop them, and all other erring establishments from polluting Bacuit Bay and from putting the lives and health of people at risk,” DENR Mimaropa Regional Executive Director Henry Adornado stated.
Bacuit Bay encompasses the islands of El Nido in Palawan. It serves as a jump-off area for tourists going to the famous Big and Small Lagoons and Hidden Beach. Unfortunately, portions of the bay were contaminated with high coliform levels because of irresponsible discharge of wastewater coming from establishments and households.
In February 2018, the DENR created Task Force El Nido and started working with partner agencies and the local government of El Nido to rehabilitate the area. Part of the island restoration process is to remove sources of wastewater that continue to pollute the bay.