ANGELES CITY – The “Writ of Kalikasan”, whose rules were issued only last April by the Supreme Court, is set to be put to a test when religious and civic leaders, as well adversely affected folk in this city, invokes it against local officials of Porac, Pampanga and owners of piggery establishments which have allegedly been the source of a 20-year-old stench affecting tourism as well as the health of residents here and nearby Porac.
The new rules on the Writ of Kalikasan give flesh to the power of the citizens to assert their rights to a better ecology and could be filed before the “green court” of the Philippine judiciary.
The rules are reputed to be the first of its kind in the world.
Piggery stench continues to foul up tourism in this city as environmental groups and affected folk urged yesterday higher authorities from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to intervene amid alleged partiality of regional environment officials.
“When Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino Alvarez complained against stench from an open dumpsite, the DENR’s Environmental Bureau (EMB) immediately shut down the dumpsite. Us in Angeles and Porac have been complaining since eight years ago about a stench afflicting us for 20 years, but the piggeries in Porac have remained open,” said Ruperto Cruz, chairman of the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM) here.
San Fernando Auxiliary Bishop Virgilio Pablo David noted that tourists in Angeles have complained of the stench. He cited a wedding Mass he officiated in which he had to explain to foreigners from Europe why air in this city has repulsive smell at regular hours almost daily.
Cruz and David said they and other sectors affected by piggery pollution here and in Porac are poised to file a class suit under the Writ of Kalikasan against some Porac officials, some piggery owners and even officials of the DENR’s Environmental Management Bureau (EMB).
“Under the writ, future generations to be affected by pollution could be included as complainants,” David noted.
Cruz cited reports that some local government officials in Porac have been in collusion with big piggery operators in the town. “I have documents that certain local officials are executives of Feed World which supplies feed to the piggeries. This later led to the formation of the Porac Swine Corp. and the Porac Poultry and Livestock Cooperative where the same local officials have significant interests,” he said.
The EMB regional office has also been blamed by some of the owners of the big piggeries in Porac for the controversies on foul odor.
In a recent press conference, a lawyer representing 10 of the biggest piggeries accused the EMB of failure to better monitor the real sources of pollutive stench reaching wide populated areas in both Angeles and Porac.
Orlando Pangilinan, legal counsel for the 10 biggest piggeries and poultries in Porac, said the EMD failed to accurately monitor the sources of air pollution which he blamed on other smaller establishments operating with sub-standard anti-pollution facilities and even without permit from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
“The EMD’s monitoring is too random so that even the establishments which have complied with all the environmental requirements of the government are lumped with the others as the source of the stench,” Pangilinan said.
While he represented only 10 big farms in Porac, Pangilinan cited reports there could be as many as 37 other piggeries and poultries operating in and around Angeles that could be the cause of the stench.
During a protest rally held at the Porac municipal hall recently by PGKM and other affected groups, EMB regional director Lormelyn Claudio reported that her office had issued notices of violations of environmental laws to six piggeries in Porac. She also said her team conducted tests on ammonia and hydrogen sulfide of the air near the farms to find out if the elements are within government standards. Results of the tests were still pending as of yesterday.
The promulgation of the rules for the Writ of Kalikasan was anticipated by both the international and domestic community since the Supreme Court held its widely-commended Forum on Environmental Justice in April last year, simultaneously through video-conferencing at the University of the Cordilleras, Baguio City, University of the Philippines-Visayas, Iloilo City, and Ateneo de Davao University, Davao City.
The forum enabled the judiciary to receive inputs directly from the different stakeholders in the justice system, primarily aimed at determining ways on how the courts can help in the protection and preservation of the environment.
The writ was supported by various development partners which include the American Bar Association-Rule of Law Initiative (ABA-ROLI), the Hanns Seidel Foundation, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United States Department of the Interior, and the World Bank.
The highlights of the rules include provisions on citizen suits, consent decree, environmental protection order, writ of kalikasan, writ of continuing mandamus, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP) and the precautionary principle. Both petitions for the issuance of the writs of kalikasan and mandamus are exempt from the payment of docket fees.
The provision on citizen suits liberalizes standing for all cases filed enforcing environmental laws.
Bishop David had warned of class suit not only against the piggery and poultry owners, but also against Porac Mayor Conradlito de la Cruz and other local officials should they fail to act on strong piggery stench that waft almost daily towards wide areas in Angeles and Porac.
PGKM reported resurgence of illnesses in schools in several barangays in Angeles and Porac whenever air flow directs piggery stench towards them.
“Students complain of dizziness, stomach ache, and vomiting. This has always been the case for many, many years now,” Cruz said.
The new rules on the Writ of Kalikasan give flesh to the power of the citizens to assert their rights to a better ecology and could be filed before the “green court” of the Philippine judiciary.
The rules are reputed to be the first of its kind in the world.
Piggery stench continues to foul up tourism in this city as environmental groups and affected folk urged yesterday higher authorities from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to intervene amid alleged partiality of regional environment officials.
“When Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino Alvarez complained against stench from an open dumpsite, the DENR’s Environmental Bureau (EMB) immediately shut down the dumpsite. Us in Angeles and Porac have been complaining since eight years ago about a stench afflicting us for 20 years, but the piggeries in Porac have remained open,” said Ruperto Cruz, chairman of the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM) here.
San Fernando Auxiliary Bishop Virgilio Pablo David noted that tourists in Angeles have complained of the stench. He cited a wedding Mass he officiated in which he had to explain to foreigners from Europe why air in this city has repulsive smell at regular hours almost daily.
Cruz and David said they and other sectors affected by piggery pollution here and in Porac are poised to file a class suit under the Writ of Kalikasan against some Porac officials, some piggery owners and even officials of the DENR’s Environmental Management Bureau (EMB).
“Under the writ, future generations to be affected by pollution could be included as complainants,” David noted.
Cruz cited reports that some local government officials in Porac have been in collusion with big piggery operators in the town. “I have documents that certain local officials are executives of Feed World which supplies feed to the piggeries. This later led to the formation of the Porac Swine Corp. and the Porac Poultry and Livestock Cooperative where the same local officials have significant interests,” he said.
The EMB regional office has also been blamed by some of the owners of the big piggeries in Porac for the controversies on foul odor.
In a recent press conference, a lawyer representing 10 of the biggest piggeries accused the EMB of failure to better monitor the real sources of pollutive stench reaching wide populated areas in both Angeles and Porac.
Orlando Pangilinan, legal counsel for the 10 biggest piggeries and poultries in Porac, said the EMD failed to accurately monitor the sources of air pollution which he blamed on other smaller establishments operating with sub-standard anti-pollution facilities and even without permit from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
“The EMD’s monitoring is too random so that even the establishments which have complied with all the environmental requirements of the government are lumped with the others as the source of the stench,” Pangilinan said.
While he represented only 10 big farms in Porac, Pangilinan cited reports there could be as many as 37 other piggeries and poultries operating in and around Angeles that could be the cause of the stench.
During a protest rally held at the Porac municipal hall recently by PGKM and other affected groups, EMB regional director Lormelyn Claudio reported that her office had issued notices of violations of environmental laws to six piggeries in Porac. She also said her team conducted tests on ammonia and hydrogen sulfide of the air near the farms to find out if the elements are within government standards. Results of the tests were still pending as of yesterday.
The promulgation of the rules for the Writ of Kalikasan was anticipated by both the international and domestic community since the Supreme Court held its widely-commended Forum on Environmental Justice in April last year, simultaneously through video-conferencing at the University of the Cordilleras, Baguio City, University of the Philippines-Visayas, Iloilo City, and Ateneo de Davao University, Davao City.
The forum enabled the judiciary to receive inputs directly from the different stakeholders in the justice system, primarily aimed at determining ways on how the courts can help in the protection and preservation of the environment.
The writ was supported by various development partners which include the American Bar Association-Rule of Law Initiative (ABA-ROLI), the Hanns Seidel Foundation, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United States Department of the Interior, and the World Bank.
The highlights of the rules include provisions on citizen suits, consent decree, environmental protection order, writ of kalikasan, writ of continuing mandamus, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP) and the precautionary principle. Both petitions for the issuance of the writs of kalikasan and mandamus are exempt from the payment of docket fees.
The provision on citizen suits liberalizes standing for all cases filed enforcing environmental laws.
Bishop David had warned of class suit not only against the piggery and poultry owners, but also against Porac Mayor Conradlito de la Cruz and other local officials should they fail to act on strong piggery stench that waft almost daily towards wide areas in Angeles and Porac.
PGKM reported resurgence of illnesses in schools in several barangays in Angeles and Porac whenever air flow directs piggery stench towards them.
“Students complain of dizziness, stomach ache, and vomiting. This has always been the case for many, many years now,” Cruz said.
