THE Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) said erring resort owners in Batangas should be investigated for various violations of environmental laws.
Like in Boracay, the group said the government should look into the environmental degradation caused by the unbridled development, including massive coastal-land reclamation, to pave the way for the operation of beach resorts along coastal areas in the province.
Pamalakaya said tourism is adversely affecting the productivity of coastal communities, threatening the livelihood of thousands of fishing families and coastal settlers.
The group cited the town of Nasugbu, where at least 300 hectares of coastal communities had been converted into a resort.
The group claimed the beach resorts are affecting the livelihood of more than 1,000 people living in the area because their traditional fishing grounds have been declared off limits and marine-protected areas.
“There are three marine-protected areas declared within the vicinity of these resorts where small fishermen are not allowed to conduct fishing activities,” said Lino Baes, the spokesman of Pamalakaya in Batangas.
He added private resort owners all over the country are violating various environmental laws, in the process depriving fishermen their right to fish even in their own traditional
fishing grounds.
Worse, he said, the unbridled development of private beach resorts destroys the marine ecosystem that leads to diminishing fish catch.
Pamalakaya has been opposing the conversion of fishing waters into private use because it does not only result in the massive economic dislocation of fishermen, but also threatens to trigger disaster and cause irreversible ecological disruption to marine biodiversity.
Baes said there are reports in the town of San Juan, Batangas, that private beach resorts have no proper waste-disposal facilities, causing pollution in the sea.
The group called on the government to stop the operation of erring private beach resorts and hold the owners accountable for their environmental crimes.
Pamalakaya said there are a total of 106 reclamation projects covering 41, 967.56 hectares of inland and marine waters throughout the archipelago.
The group added these projects would “completely kill our marine resources and our fisherfolk.”