Reclamation project ECCs to be reviewed

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said it will coordinate with the Philippine Reclamation Authority and local government units in reviewing Environment Compliance Certificates (ECCs) issued to Manila Bay Reclamation projects.

This follows results of the DENR's commissioned cumulative impact assessment that showed reclamation projects affect water circulation, fisheries and ecosystems, and cause flooding.

Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga said ECCs contain a section that allows the DENR to modify any of its approved certificates.

"We take that section very seriously, in light of the results of the cumulative impact assessment phase one," she stressed, noting there would be a second phase, and that the DENR will continue with the assessments to guarantee compliance with the Supreme Court's Writ of Continuing Mandamus.

The Supreme Court's Writ of Continuing Mandamus, issued in 2008, ordered 13 different government agencies to clean, rehabilitate and preserve Manila Bay, and restore and maintain its waters to SB level — or fit for swimming, skin-diving and other forms of recreation.

Yulo-Loyzaga assured the public the DENR will do its best to protect people who rely on Manila Bay for livelihood, while doing its job of preserving its environs.