SC asked to stop P1-B Boracay reclamation project

A Boracay-based group on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to prevent the Aklan government from proceeding with the construction of a 40-hectare reclamation site between Boracay Island and the coastal village of Caticlan. In a 35-page petition, the Boracay Foundation Inc. (BFI) asked the high tribunal to issue a temporary environmental protection order (TEPO) to stop the P1-billion project which has supposedly adverse impact on the environment. The group, composed of some 160 businessmen and residents on Boracay Island, also asked the SC to compel Aklan to conduct a comprehensive environmental impact assessment. "The actions of [the Aklan provincial government] clearly endanger the already frail ecological balance in Boracay. Any further actions to reclaim land in Caticlan and Boracay without the proper comprehensive environmental impact assessment shall cause grave and irreparable injury to the area," said the petitioners. They added: "Boracay Island, with its status as the country's premier tourist spot, as well as for its surrounding coral reefs and mangroves, had been declared an environmentally critical area (ECA) as early as 1981. As such, any project undertaken in the area requires the performance of a comprehensive environmental impact assessment." GMA News Online tried to reach the office of Aklan Gov. Carlito Marquez for comment, but it could not be contaced as of posting time.

The reclamation project has two components: 36.82 hectares on Caticlan in mainland Aklan, and 3.18 hectares on Boracay island. Caticlan and Boracay are located in Malay town in Aklan. Image courtesy of Marine Environmental Resource Foundation and the UP Marine Science Institute

Citing a study conducted by marine biologists from the Marine Environmental Resource Foundation and the University of Philippines' Marine Science Institute, the foundation also said the project will affect the current and flow of the tides between Caticlan and Boracay and may cause further erosion of the sands on the island, a premier tourist spot in the Philippines. In their petition, the BFI also claimed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) gave the project its green light by giving the Aklan government an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) even if the latter has failed to submit the necessary requirements, such as the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) or Programmatic Environmental Report and Management Plan (PERMP). "[The Aklan provincial government's] scheming machination to circumvent the regulations governing the issuance of an ECC for development projects are manifested by its failure to submit a PEIS and/or PEPRMP in applying for the ECC over phase 1 of the reclamation project," the foundation said. The petitioners added that the Aklan government failed to consult with the local government units (LGUs) and other stakeholders before the start of the project, which local officials from Malay town and Caticlan village have strongly opposed. "Not only is the implementation of the reclamation project in violation of the laws pertaining to EIS [environmental impact statement] but, likewise, violates the most basic principles enshrined in the Local Government Code," they said. "That Respondent Province [Aklan] was denied a favorable endorsement by the LGUs concerned – the Malay Municipality and Barangay Caticlan – stems from the failure of Respondent Province to enter into consultations with the aforementioned LGUs. Likewise, the Liga ng mga Barangay-Malay Chapter also expressed strong opposition against the reclamation project," they added. — RSJ, GMA News