Court of Appeals orders DENR to implement MOA on Taal lake

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) has ordered the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to comply with its agreement with the Agham party-list group for the protection of Taal lake in Batangas.

In a ruling last June 29 but released only yesterday, the CA’s first division issued a writ of continuing mandamus directing the DENR to implement the memorandum of agreement (MOA) it forged with Agham party-list Rep. Angelo Palmones.

The CA approved the MOA for being “not contrary to law, public morals and public policy” and even commended the parties for coming up with an amicable settlement on the issue.

Under the MOA, the parties agreed on the strict issuance of appropriate clearances to all projects in the Taal Volcano Protected Landscape in accordance with the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act and the approved TVPL Management Plan.

The DENR and Agham also agreed to support fish cage operations within Taal lake’s carrying capacity, intensify monitoring of stocking density of fish cages, and conduct regular monitoring and assessment of water quality of Taal lake.

“We also included in the agreement the compliance with environmental laws of piggery and poultry operators and the establishments in the TVPL,” Palmones said.

He said his group has filed a bill amending the NIPAS Act of 1992, including the creation of the position of protected area superintendent in each of the protected areas under NIPAS, stricter penalties for violations of the NIPAS Act, and automatic retention of 75 percent of the Integrated Protected Area Fund by the Protected Area Management Board of the protected areas.

Palmones filed the petition last January with the Supreme Court, which issued the writ stopping the issuance of new permits for fishing operations in the lake and remanding the case to the CA.