‘PENRO heeds Janiuay execs’ plea for 2-year quarry moratorium’
Longtime plea for quarry moratorium of town officials in the Municipality of Janiuay, Iloilo has apparently been heeded by Iloilo’s environment officials.
As such, an amicable settlement has been reached to have a two-year prohibition on all quarrying activities along Suage River here.
Contained in Committee Report No. 2008-07, Third District Board Member Mariano Malones Sr. made the disclosure as chairman of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources.
Set to be presented in today’s regular session, massive quarry operations in Janiuay was the focal point of the committee’s investigation. This, after Janiuay Mayor Ben Margarico filed a complaint and sought for legislative action on quarrying operations in his town.
Major resource persons called by the committee were Mayor Margarico, Janiuay’s environment officer Ricardo Minurtio and province’s environment officer Soledad Sucaldito. Two of the major players in the quarrying in said town were also called namely Enrico Macalalag and Nicolas Solinap.
“During the hearing, Mayor Margarico and Mr. Minurtio had expressed the concern that additional quarrying operations along Suage River would threaten the Janiuay bridge and said they were not given updates on actions made by the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO),” excerpts of the report went.
The PENRO lady chief explained to the committee though that corresponding action was done relative to the mayor’s complaint. In fact, she said, “..her office had informed Gov. Niel Tupas, Cong. Arthur Defensor, the Ombudsman and the President on developments on the matter.”
“Mrs. Sucaldito had also pointed out that a report of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau had stressed that the quarry operations downstream of Suage River had nothing to do with the destruction of the bridge,” the committee report continued.
Mayor Margarico has since made public his dismay that massive quarrying operations occur within his turf minus the concurrence of barangay and town officials. By virtue of a Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) circular, Local Government Units (LGUs) have no more say on the issuance of Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC). Same circular likewise provides a hands-off policy for all LGUs on Certificates of Non-Coverage (CNC) to applicants for quarry operations.
As an added ‘victory’ for Janiuay, the quarry permittees themselves agreed not to grant right-of-way in their properties to other quarry applicants.
It was not immediately clear when the moratorium will officially start or whether PENRO’s decision to back Janiuay’s stand will need get the support of Governor Tupas.