SC junks kalikasan plea vs Boac reclamation project

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court has junked a petition for a writ of kalikasan to stop the construction of the Boac River Reclamation Project in Marinduque.

In a session on Tuesday, the justices of the high court dismissed the petition of  former Boac mayor Pedrito Nepomuceno for  lack of merit.

In a five-page petition, Nepomuceno said the reclamation project has caused “perennial flooding” in the Poblacion area and the Kabilang Ilog Barangays in Boac. 

He also claimed that even professional engineers sought to discontinue the project because it endangers the lives and property of those living along the riverbanks.

The former mayor pointed out that during his term as provincial board member in 2004 to 2007, he repeatedly asked the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to require the Department of Public Works and Highways to submit an Environmental Impact Analysis and Environmental Compliance Certificate, among other DENR requirements, but his appeals were ignored.