The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is aghast over the trash found on Boracay’s beachfront during the first day of the reopening dry run that it wants the full force of the law applied against litterbugs.

DENR Undersecretary for Solid Waste Management and LGU Concerns Benny Antiporda said that adopting a “zero tolerance policy” against litterbugs is the best way to prevent littering problems on the island.

He said that being compliant means "nagmamahal kayo sa ating kalikasan, at yun ang gusto namin palakasin."

The DENR official issued the statement after meeting with Compliant Association of Boracay (CAB), a newly established group whose members include owners of hotels, resorts, retail shops and restaurants.

Antiporda also announced that the DENR and other government agencies in charge of Boracay’s rehabilitation are amenable to CAB’s proposal to designate its pollution officers as “marshals” so they can have authority to go after litterbugs.

"We will talk with the local police so that you can do your obligation to your country to protect the environment," Antiporda told CAB members during the meeting.

He also enjoined them to use their social media accounts to come up with a joint statement to remind people to be responsible.

The DENR, he said, is also encouraging citizen’s arrest for litterbugs.

The CAB had earlier written DENR Secretary Roy A. Cimatu requesting that their pollution officers be deputized as “Boracay marshals” to police public areas on the island.

As marshals, the CAB said their pollution officers would be on the lookout for litterers and “shall remind the public to dispose of the trash properly.”

It added that “should the erring public refuse to cooperate, the marshalls may be the personal details of the individual(s) and endorse to policing agencies in Boracay.”

Antiporda reminded the public that under the Anti-Littering Law, littering is a criminal offense and violators could face a fine or render community service from eight to 16 hours.

He noted that under Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, establishments are required to designate a pollution control officer who shall ensure compliance with the law, among others.

Photos of discarded trash along Boracay’s famous White Beach went viral on social media recently. They were taken just hours after Boracay was opened to local tourists for the 11-day dry run for Boracay’s soft opening slated for October 26, 2018. ###

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Published: 18 October 2018

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Despite visible improvements, Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu said a lot more needs to be done to completely rehabilitate and ensure the sustainability of the world-famous Boracay Island.

Cimatu said that while the resort island is “no longer a cesspool,” there is no reason for government and other stakeholders to be complacent.

“This is not the time for us to relax and lower our guards,” Cimatu said on the first day of the 11-day dry run for the much-awaited reopening of Boracay later this month.

“While much has been gained already, still a lot remains to be done and we still ask for your extended patience, support and understanding,” he added.

Cimatu, who heads the inter-agency task force in charge of Boracay’s rehabilitation, cited the ongoing road and drainage improvement projects, which were delayed due to successive typhoons.

“We lost about 30 to 40 days of work but we will be able to compensate for this and finish the drainage system,” Cimatu explained.

The environment chief said that all projects will continue even after Boracay’s soft opening slated for October 26.

“Rehabilitation will continue after October 26. We are just in Phase 1,” he stressed.

Cimatu led other officials of government agencies involved in the rehabilitation of Boracay in welcoming Aklanons who were the first guests in the newly- rehabilitated island which he described as a “better Boracay”.

Boracay, he said, was no longer a cesspool and tourists can once again enjoy its pristine waters.

He gladly announced that Boracay waters are already fit for swimming based on the standards set by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

“We offer to you now a better Boracay,” Cimatu said. “Boracay beaches are now a sight to behold and the entire island will even be grander in the near future.”

Famous for its powdery white sand, pristine blue waters and amazing sunsets, Boracay has been named several times as one of the best beaches in the world.

But on April 26, President Rodrigo Duterte issued Presidential Proclamation No. 475 ordering the closure of Boracay to tourists for six months to pave the way for its rehabilitation from environmental damage caused by overdevelopment. ###

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Published: 17 October 2018

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Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu has assured that the government was prepared to address all problems that might occur during the 11-day dry run for the reopening of the world famous Boracay Island.

Cimatu said the government policies and interventions intended to protect Boracay from unsustainable tourism activities will be put to the test during the dry run, which started on Monday and will last until October 25.

“The point of the dry run is to ensure that everything will run smoothly during the soft opening on October 26,” said Cimatu, who heads the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) in charge of Boracay’s rehabilitation.

While the dry run got off to a good start, Cimatu said the BIATF would know on the third day whether the government interventions really work.

“We will only see the effects and results of all these interventions on the third day after tourist arrivals,” he said.

Cimatu said the BIATF would “not allow the rehabilitation efforts done in the past six months go to waste.”

He particularly cited the “environmental interventions” that has made Boracay “no longer a cesspool,” which was how President Rodrigo Duterte described it before the island was ordered closed to tourists in April.

“As you may have observed, there has been not only a visible improvement in water quality. Tests done by the EMB (Environmental Management Bureau) revealed that the coliform level is now down to 18.1 MPN/100 mL from thousands or even millions in some areas of the island’s waters prior to closing,” Cimatu said.

The standard coliform level is 100 most probable number per 100 milliliters of sample.

Cimatu said the EMB, a line bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, will continue to check the quality of water discharged from sewage treatment plants (STPs) on the island.

He said that solid waste disposal will also be looked into in order to make sure Boracay’s garbage are “immediately moved out and not remain on the island for more than 24 hours.”

Cimatu insisted that only establishments compliant with the requirements of the DENR, the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Department of Tourism are allowed to reopen and operate.

The DENR, he said, will only issue environmental compliance certificate (ECC) to businesses with own STPs or connected to a provider, and those not within forestlands or wetlands.

Cimatu said that tourist arrival of 6,405 persons per day will be strictly followed.

Only a total of 1,000 rooms from accredited hotels will be available for booking at any time during the day, Cimatu said.

“The BIATF is firm on 100% compliance. If you do not comply, you do not operate," Cimatu stressed.

He added: More than all these, a change in the behavior of the people—the locals and the tourists—will bring real change to Boracay.” ###

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Published: 16 October 2018

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Government agencies in charge of the rehabilitation of Boracay will closely monitor compliance and effectiveness of the guidelines laid down to protect the resort island from unsustainable tourism practices during its dry run or partial reopening from October 15 to 25.

Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu, head of the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF), said the 11-day dry run would allow government to test all systems put in place during the six months Boracay underwent much-needed rest and cleanup.

He therefore appealed for cooperation and understanding from all stakeholders and local tourists, who will be among the firsts to experience a reinvigorated Boracay.

“We will be monitoring a lot of things, from managing the entrance, exit, and stay of the tourists, to enforcing rule of law on establishments that have been found to be non-compliant to laws and regulations,” Cimatu said.

The former military chief said the government would strictly enforce the “no compliance, no operation” policy for establishments not only during the dry run but beyond Boracay’s formal reopening on October 26.

“We will not hesitate to close hotels and other establishments that would operate without clearance from the BIATF,” Cimatu said.

He also warned tourists who are planning to visit the island to make sure they book their accommodations with compliant hotels and similar establishments, a complete list of which will be released by the Department of Tourism.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is deploying at least 30 environmental enforcers to check on Boracay’s water quality, solid waste management, drainage and sewage systems, and occupation on forest areas and wetlands.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police have committed to help maintain peace and order on the island during the dry run leading to the October 26 reopening.

“We are trying to correct the mistakes of the past, and we have succeeded in finding a solution to cleaning the environment. We do not want to backslide on what we have started,” Cimatu said.

The BIATF recently approved a set of guidelines to ensure Boracay’s environment will be sustained and protected from the expected massive influx of local and foreign tourists.

The guidelines include a regulation on tourist arrivals and number of persons allowed to stay in Boracay, in accordance with the island’s carrying capacity.

A study conducted by the DENR’s Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau and the University of the Philippines-Los Baños revealed that the island’s daily carrying capacity is 54,945—19,215 tourists and 35,730 non-tourists, which refer to residents, migrants and stay-in workers.

During the dry run, the BIATF will be implementing a traffic scheme amid ongoing road works on the island. This includes ferrying visitors directly to the Tambisaan port or pontoons set up at different boat stations, and impounding private and public vehicles operating without permit. ###

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Published: 13 October 2018

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Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu has lifted the suspension on the environmental compliance certificates (ECCs) of some businesses in Boracay, a few weeks before the much-awaited reopening of the world famous resort island.

Cimatu, in his Memorandum Circular 2018-14 dated October 5, gave the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) in Region 6 the go signal to lift the suspension on the ECCs issued to “complying” hotels and other establishments on the island.

“In view of the upcoming opening of the Boracay Island on 26 October 2018, after its closure for 6 months, the EMB Regional Office 6 is hereby authorized to lift the suspension of ECCs of all complying hotels and establishments in said island,” Cimatu said in the memo addressed to the regional directors of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and EMB in Western Visayas.

Last July, Cimatu issued a directive suspending the ECCs of all business establishments in Boracay pending a thorough review of their compliance to existing local and national laws.

Memorandum Circular 2018-03, dated July 18, also created a committee composed of representatives from the DENR, EMB, and Mines and Geosciences Bureau to review the compliance of these establishments with their respective ECCs.

In the new memo, Cimatu ordered the committee to continuously monitor all Boracay establishments on their compliance with existing ECCs and environmental management plans.

The DENR chief also directed the committee to submit to him its regular monitoring reports.

“Likewise, the EMB Regional Office 6 shall continue to monitor establishments despite such lifting of suspension of their respective ECCs, and monitor all establishments issued with Certificate of Non-Coverage (CNC) to ensure their compliance with environmental laws and assure that no violation against the same is committed,” he added.

Under the Environmental Impact Assessment System, ECCs are issued to projects that pose potential risks or impacts on the environment. A project proponent is required to secure an ECC before starting operations.

CNCs, on the other hand, are issued to proposed projects that are unlikely to cause adverse environmental impacts.

The DENR has likewise recently begun to issue Certificates of Conditional Approval (CCAs) to establishments considered to be “90 to 95 per cent compliant” to environmental regulations.

Businesses granted CCAs are those that have fulfilled all DENR-related requirements except that on sewage treatment plants (STPs), which may yet be completed or are still undergoing construction.

The CCA allows establishments to proceed to the Department of Interior and Local Government for assessment of permits, and finally to the Department of Tourism for final accreditation and clearance to operate when the island opens.

Cimatu said the issuance of CCAs was in line with the President’s directive to afford the public the “ease of doing business” with government.

As of October 8, the DENR has issued CCAs to 159 establishments. ###

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Published: 12 October 2018

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