DOT backs 6-month deadline for Boracay Island woes
The Department of Tourism (DOT) backed the decision of the government in giving concerned agencies a six-month deadline in fixing the problems of Boracay Island.
Both the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) were ordered by President Duterte to fix the problems over erring establishments in the island within six months.
The tourism department also expressed support to the DENR's move to shut down erring establishments in Boracay, saying "it's high time to order the closure."
"It's high time to order the closure of some 200 tourism establishments in Boracay found violating environmental laws and regulations," Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon Teo said in a statement.
Easement as well as water and solid waste disposal are among the violations of these establishments.
Earlier, the DENR has already ordered the closure of 51 establishments in the island.
“The massive clean-up of Boracay is a bitter pill that we have to swallow if we were to collectively save and sustain Boracay,” Teo added as she announced that she will invite Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu and DILG Chief Eduardo Año for another visit to the island soon.
Meanwhile, a Compliance Monitoring Office in Boracay Island will be put in place to see if the tourism establishments in the island are operating according to the standards set for the purpose of making the island more competitive in the domestic and international markets. Teo has ordered the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Authority (TIEZA), its infrastructure arm, to oversee the swift completion of the R716-million drainage project to address the flooding in the area.
As the government runs after businesses in Boracay that were non-compliant with environmental laws, Manila Water Company, Inc. (MWC) said it can accommodate all commercial establishments in the island should they wish to be connected to a sewerage system.
Through Boracay Island Water Company, Inc. (BIWC), Manila Water holds the exclusive right to operate, manage, and expand water and used water facilities in the island. BIWC is 80 percent owned by Manila Water and 20 percent owned by the government through Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA).
Environment Chief Roy Cimatu said that as of now, around 40 percent of all establishments in Boracay are not yet compliant with Republic Act No. 9275 or the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.
He then gave these erring establishments two months to either connect to the sewage treatment plant of BIWC or install their own wastewater treatment facilities.
In an interview, Manila Water President and CEO Ferdinand Dela Cruz said the company can accommodate all these companies should they wish to connect to BIWC's system.
"We're working with them (TIEZA). We have an approved business plan and a big part of that business plan is to address sewerage treatment. And we are on track in executing this approved business plan and we are working with DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources] and LGUs [local government units] to address the issues that have been raised," Dela Cruz said.
"We can definitely cover [them]. We have the ability to absorb that capacity," he added.
Manila Water Co. is particularly investing more than R4 billion throughout its entire concession in Boracay to meet the growing demand for reliable water system in the island. Started in 2009, the concession will end in 2034.
BIWC Business Operations Head Blanca Eunicia Aldaba said earlier that a total investment of R4.28 billion is needed to build new water facilities as well as refurbish the existing water system in the island until 2034.
Of this, R3.07 billion will be spent over the next five to 10 years so that by 2022, the island is already 100 percent covered in terms of wastewater and sewerage systems.
As of last year, Boracay's population is already nearing 40,000 or estimated households of 8,000 but 75 percent are not yet connected to the sewer line and are just using the drainage line that goes straight to the sea.
Boracay Water rates is currently one of the highest in the country but BIWC claims this remains cheaper than two of the world’s competing tourist destinations Maldives and Bali.
"Shape up or face closure," Cimatu told commercial establishments releasing untreated wastewater and sewage into the waters of the world-famous Boracay Island.
“The DENR is giving them two months to comply with the law. Otherwise, we will close them,” he added.
President Rodrigo Duterte recently ordered the environment chief to find ways to end problems besetting Boracay, which he described as a “cesspool.”
He then gave Cimatu six months to clean up one of the country’s top tourist destination or else the entire island will be shut down.
Under RA 9275, establishments and households are mandated to dispose their septic wastes to a treatment facility.
Cimatu said that a notice of violation will soon be issued to establishments that are illegally connected or are not connected at all to the sewage treatment plant.
“We will give these establishments three to five days to respond. Otherwise, we will cut their water connections,” Cimatu said.
Aside from the sewage problem, Cimatu said the DENR will also go after resort owners who have constructed buildings within areas classified as forestlands.
“Forestlands are no-build zones. What they have done is against the law,” Cimatu said, referring to Presidential Decree No. 705 or the Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines.
Cimatu said he had already issued a directive that no new environmental compliance certificates (ECC) will be issued in Boracay to prevent the construction of new buildings there.