An environmental advocate is slated to address the Sangguniang Panlalawigan
(SP) to shed light on the issue regarding alleged potential environmental
damage that may be inflicted on an area in Alburquerque town by five (5)
development projects.
Advocate Vera Villocido in a letter to the SP, headed by Vice Gov. Rene
Relampagos, asks an audience with the august body regarding five (5) projects
located in barangay Sta. Fe in the said town that are deemed to be critical
because they are allegedly done in the protected area of Albuquerque-Loay-
Loboc Protected Landscapes and Seascapes.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Oct. 17, 2020, she revealed to The Bohol
Tribune that she will speak before the provincial board on Tuesday, Oct. 20,
2020.
In her letter to the SP Villocido said, “As a stakeholder of the project and a
resident of Alburquerque, Bohol, representing about 150 members Alburanons
Care, I would like to officially request to speak to the august body of the
Sangguniang Panlalawigan to put on record our protest of these projects as
well as to appeal to the body to stop or scrap the project because of the
following reasons.”
She enumerated the reasons, “1. Non-compliance with the requirements of the
(National Integrated Protected Areas System) NIPAS Law which is the
(Environmental Compliance Certificate/Environmental Impact Statement)
ECC/EIS before starting the earth moving activities in 1.9 hectare part of
which is mangrove area.
“2. Non-compliance of the work stoppage order of (Provincial Environment
and Natural Resources Officer) PENRO Charlie Fabre issued on April 22,
2020.
“3. Desecration of the asinan (salt producing place) in the said area, which is
the tangible and intangible heritage of the Alburanons, a site which has been
visited by the National Museum of the Philippines as a necessary step for its
declaration as an archaeologic site because of its being an important cultural
property based on RA 10066. The asinan has also been covered with earth
materials, destroying the “parils” and the huts of the original and traditional
asinan.”
In a statement, Villocido said,” Vice Governor Rene Relampagos already
calendared me on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, to speak to the Sangguniang
Panlalawigan about our concern in Santa Fe, both the mangroves and the
asinan as mentioned in my letter. I have been prepared to do this last Tuesday,
but unfortunately, this letter request did not make it on time for the pre-
session, even if VG Rene and I already spoke about my coming in over the
weekend, after I took a video of the asinan and the 1.9 hectare area for the
proposed project.”
ONLINE PETITION
Villocido started an online petition regarding this issue on the popular petition
online platform, Change.org.
The petition can be found in this link https://www.change.org/p/alburquerque-
save-sante-fe-beach-alburquerque-bohol/redirect-false.
As of yesterday afternoon, 1,342 persons have affixed their digital signatures
to the petition.
The petition featured this statement,” The Santa Fe Beach Development in
Alburquerque, Bohol already started without the necessary permits and
Environment Compliance Certificate in compliance with the National
Integrated Protected Areas System or NIPAS Law of 1992. Such act is rape
of the mangroves! This development needs to be stopped or scrapped because
it will destroy the last frontier of mangroves which are protected by a national
law declaring the Alburquerque-Loay-Loboc Protected Landscapes and
Seascapes!”
ALBUR MAYOR’S REACTION
In a radio interview on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020 over Open Forum,
Alburquerque town mayor Don Ritchie Buates said the protest or objections
being initiated by some parties are premature and baseless.
Moreover, Buates said that the local government unit has a plan for a
boardwalk in the mangrove area of Tabuane near Sta. Fe beach remains a plan
and there is nothing definite about it.
In fact, he said they are trying to look for funds for the project. He added that
he will ensure that the project will not harm the environment and will also
attract tourists to his town.
In the same interview, Buates said that he will oppose any move that will
cause harm to the ecosystem of the area and impact the existence of the
asinan, which part of the town’s cultural heritage.
As for a development being undertaken by a private business group,
development has been ceased as the owners of the property has yet to secure
an ECC, the mayor said.