Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 6) — The Environment department said it needs a new department to effectively ensure its laws and policies are being followed, its chief said.
In a House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations hearing on Friday, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) presented a 2020 budget proposal of ₱25.5 billion. Among their suggestions, was the creation of an “enforcement bureau.”
Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu admitted the agency is “lacking” in enforcement, saying they need help in addressing violations such as failure to secure an Environmental Compliance Certificate and to ensure proper waste management.
“All the mandate that is given to us by the law like the Clean Air, Clean Water and Solid Waste Management medyo mahina ‘yung DENR [the DENR is weak in implementing them] because of the enforcement. We cannot enforce,” he told the House panel.
In 2018, the DENR noted multiple violations across different tourist hotspots, namely the islands of Siargao and Boracay and the city of Manila. The agency also implemented a six-month rehabilitation for Boracay and began weekly clean-ups in Manila Bay as directed by the President.
Cimatu said they are eyeing more rehabilitative action in other tourist sites such as El Nido and Coron in Palawan, Mindoro and Panglao in Bohol.
Deaths in Palawan
The worst of these violations, the Environment chief said, is the reported violence against DENR officers, especially in Palawan.
Recent reports detailed the death of one of DENR’s forest rangers in El Nido on Thursday. He was killed by illegal loggers in the area, Cimatu said.
“Kahapon namatay po na naman ‘yung isa naming forest ranger. Namatay po. Pinatay ng illegal logger,” Cimatu confirmed during the hearing.
[Translation: Yesterday, one of our forest rangers died. He was killed by illegal loggers.]
He said it was the third time such a killing occurred in El Nido. The secretary said he had already instructed his officers in the area to undergo self-defense training.
He had also previously asked for assistance from the police and military but he said police officers were not always available to accompany rangers in the forests.
“Gusto kong i-maintain the last frontier of the Philippines in Palawan pero madami nang namamatay eh,” Cimatu said.
[Translation: I want to maintain the Philippines’ last frontier in Palawan but so many people have been killed.]
The lawmakers did not inquire further into this proposal.
The Global Witness, an international environmental watchdog, ranked the Philippines as the “most dangerous country” for environment defenders in 2018. Out of the 164 deaths among land and environmental activists, 30 of these were recorded in the country.
