The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) must strictly enforce environmental laws and permit requirements on reclamation, quarrying, mining, and land conversion, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan said Wednesday, warning that poorly planned development can magnify flooding already worsened by extreme rainfall and rapid urbanization.
The senator said the DENR must fulfill its mandate and ensure that projects do not compromise watersheds, waterways, wetlands, coastlines, and communities for present and future generations.
“Patong-patong ang epekto sa baha ng patong-patong na mga permit sa reclamation, quarrying, at land conversion. Hindi lisensya ang environmental permits para baha ang pagdusahan ng kasalukuyan at susunod na henerasyon,” Pangilinan said.
“Hindi natatapos sa pag-process ng mga permits ang tungkulin ng DENR. Ang mandato ng department ay protektahan at pangalagaan ang mga ecosystem na nagpoprotekta at bumubuhay sa atin,” he added.
The call comes as recent flooding again highlights the accumulated impact of intense rainfall, inadequate drainage, urban development, watershed degradation, river encroachment, quarrying, and coastal development.
Citing DENR’s cumulative impact assessment on ongoing reclamation projects in Greater Metro Manila warning of a possible “bottleneck” effect on floodwaters discharge into Manila Bay, [1] Pangilinan underscores the need to assess projects collectively rather than approve them one at a time without adequately accounting for their combined impact on an entire bay or watershed.
“Sabi ko nga, walang kinikilalang political o project boundaries ang tubig. At di rin nito kinikilala ang environmental compliance certificates,” he said. “Kaya dapat tingnan ng DENR ang buong watershed, mula sa bundok at ilog hanggang sa mga lungsod at Manila Bay, bago payagan ang mga proyektong permanenteng iniiba ang agos ng tubig.”
Quarrying can also aggravate local flooding. DENR has also previously stressed that widespread urbanization and paved surfaces, which prevent rainwater from infiltrating the ground, have a much larger impact on Metro Manila-wide flooding.
Pangilinan said this makes stricter scrutiny of land conversion equally urgent, particularly where farms, wetlands, floodplains, and other permeable areas are replaced by subdivisions, roads, warehouses, and commercial developments.
He urged DENR to impose no-go zones in critical watersheds, wetlands, mangroves, floodways and river easements; require transparent cumulative flood-impact studies; strengthen monitoring of quarry and mining operations; and suspend or revoke permits when environmental safeguards are violated.
“We cannot keep engineering our way out of floods while approving developments that remove the very forests, wetlands, floodplains, and waterways that absorb and carry water,” he said. “Development must work with nature, not force present and future generations to suffer and pay for destroying it.”
The senator said environmental regulation should ultimately apply the principle: Protection should come before profit where development could significantly increase flooding or permanently damage natural defenses.
“Sa darating na budget deliberations, titingnan din natin kung tama ang paggastos ng DENR para sa mga anti-pollution laws tulad ng Clean Air, Clean Water, Solid Waste Management, at itong Extended Producer Responsibility, para pangalagaan ang ating likas-yaman,” Pangilinan said.