DENR moves to meet SC’s deadlines for Manila Bay cleanup

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Sunday bared steps it has been taking to meet the deadline set by the Supreme Court to clean up the Manila Bay. DENR chief Ramon Paje said he has already ordered Manila Bay Coordinating Office (MBCO) executive director Noel Gaerlan to submit to the SC the updated Manila Bay clean-up plan even before the June 30 deadline set by the high court. The SC last month gave deadlines to concerned government agencies, including the DENR, to implement an order it released in December 2008 for the rehabilitation of Manila Bay. “The deadlines set by the SC will hopefully lead to the bay’s rehabilitation at the soonest possible time," he said in a statement Sunday. Paje, together with five Supreme Court justices, inspected last week the progress of the DENR’s on-going clean-up of the Manila Bay. According to the DENR chief, the department’s Manila Bay clean-up plan will focus on three issues: solid waste management, liquid waste management, and informal settlers. The plan also includes a “point system" to evaluate if barangays near the bay are complying with the Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act. Other government agencies included in the Manila Bay clean-up plan are the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, the Department of Public Works and Highways, and the Department of Interior and Local Government. — With Andreo Calonzo,/VS, GMA News