Arthur Salazar, deputy director of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in
Under the Local Government Code of 1991, LGUs are supposed to plow back to environmen-tal protection and conservation a portion of their development funds.
Salazar explained adding that local governments have an important role to play in the full implementation of the Manila Bay Coastal Strategy.
The coastal strategy outlines activities that would reduce by half the total discharge of raw sewage, septage, and untreated or partially untreated waste water into the bay by 2015.
It also calls for concerted efforts to increase productivity of fishery resources to attain maximum sustainable yield by 2012, among others.
The DENR created SCCs in the three regions bordering Manila Bay to coordinate and synchronize rehabilitation efforts of government agencies and the private sector for the 1,994 square kilometer Manila Bay.
Earlier, Environment Secretary Lito Atienza called on local government units to help protect the bay and enforce environmental laws, citing Constitutional provisions guaranteeing local authority within an LGU jurisdiction.
“Local officials will never go wrong in protecting the environment as this means protecting the health of their constituents and their livelihood,” Atienza said.
Two major water concessionaires, Manila Water and Maynilad Water Services, have been ordered by the DENR to fast track the setting up of wastewater treatment facilities within their concession coverage.
Over 200 companies surrounding the Manila Bay area were also issued notices of violations (NOV) since December 2008 in a bid to curb the unregulated discharge of untreated wastewater into tributaries leading into the bay.
An economic valuation study conducted by the DENR in 2005 showed Manila Bay provides more than P8 billion in economic revenues each year, from fisheries, tourism, and aquaculture, to transportation and shipping.
The DENR aims to bring back the waters of Manila Bay into “SB” classification, which describes marine water quality as suitable for public bathing and swimming, or for spawning “bangus” (scientific name Chanos chanos) and similar fish species.
