Non-compliance with ECC USC fined P25,000

CEBU, Philippines -  The University of San Carlos (USC) has been asked to pay P25, 000 instead of P50,000 as penalty for violating  a condition stipulated in the  Environmental Compliance Certification issued for its ongoing “complex road access project” at its Talamban campus.

Cerwin Eviota, the university’s communication consultant, told reporters yesterday that EMB-7 Director William Cuñado, in a June 23 notice of violation,  set a fine of P50,000 for the violation.

An EMB inspection team discovered last June 13 that the school’s access road project is approximately 17 meters wide, which is way beyond the 8.6 meters stated in the ECC.

But, Eviota said, the school was later asked to pay just P25,000 as it was a first-time violation.

The USC administration has admitted its lapse of not updating the EMB that it made the road project wider to include a sidewalk that also serves as bike lane at the USC-Talamban Campus.

Eviota said there was the intent to amend the ECC and that the university has complied with all permits the law required as regards the ongoing development at USC-TC.

“There was really an effort to update. Only that it was not internally accomplished…. 

The engineers, architect… all did their job. But ang nag-prepare unta sa documentation medyo na-busy lang kaayo; but we cannot offer excuse for that,” he said.

The same explanation was given during a technical conference with officers from the DENR-EMB last July 4.

“The Good thing with the technical conference, there is a clear understanding now on how many times and when that the university, as a developer , would update EMB on the development here in Talamban. This was not clarified before, when the ECC was issued before, as far as USC is concerned,” Eviota said during a presentation on the ongoing campus development at USC-TC.

Section 4 of the Presidential Decree 1586 provides that “no person, corporation or partnership shall undertake or operate any such declared environmentally critical project or area without first securing an ECC issued by the President or his duly authorized representative or the terms and conditions in the issuance of ECC….”

“Violators shall be punished the suspension or cancellation of his/its certificate and/or fine in an amount not exceeding P50,000 for every violation thereof, at the discretion of the EMB,” it added.

Architect Ellis Puerto, USC Infrastructure Development Office director, said that the road was originally just 8.6 meters in width because they considered it years back as only a minor road.

In 2004, they widened it to 13.8 meters, which was covered by an ECC. 

“Perhaps what the people saw on the document was the old one…We also increased the (width of the) sidewalk because if we want to encourage people to be healthy through biking or walking, we have to increase the (width of the) sidewalk… We tried to answer the 1.2 meter requirement for any sidewalk,” he said.

Eviota said USC would pay the fine next week, ahead of the August 5 deadline EMB set.

Ricardo Fornis, USC College of Engineering assistant dean, also said that among the reasons for the road improvement was to provide drainage lines and accommodate a water supply line.

He said the university adopted flood mitigating measure to allay fears that the ongoing project would cause heavy flood along Banilad-Talamban road.

Fornis said the campus has 10 water retention ponds, a low lying area designed for flood control, and a football field which serves as main catchment that could retain a large volume of runoff water.—/RHM  (FREEMAN)