Gov’t Fact-finding Body Confirms Illegal Mining, Illegal Road Construction Inside Butuan Watershed Area
by Ben Serrano
July 2, 2009
BUTUAN CITY – The composite government and NGO fact finding team who were tasked to conduct site visitation and investigate alleged illegal mining, illegal cutting of trees and illegal construction of road inside the 4,367.44 hectares government declared watershed areas found allegations of said illegalities positive and were happening inside the restricted areas.
In their six pages initial official report dated June 9, 2009 signed by officials of the different government agencies and representative from the Catholic-led Caraga Conference for Peace and Development (CCPD) which composed the fact finding team recommended the following request the Philippine Air Force to use two helicopters for further site visitations in case the LGU-Butuan City will not allegedly allow the team to pass through the Taguibon-Malinhawod road section which is located within watershed area.
Request the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to clear and secure the watershed areas from Barangay Anticala and Malinhawod (particularly areas 7 and 9) and request the Philippine National Police (PNP) to escort the team in the conduct of site visitation.
It also recommended concerned government agencies to continue the conduct of thorough and impartial investigation following confirmed illegal road construction, illegal mining and cutting of trees activities in the area.
However, the official initial fact finding report did not recommend filing of charges against perpetrators or masterminds in said illegalities nether officially identifying them.
The team also recommended a stop to all on-going illegalities in the watershed area such as widening of roads, quarrying, gravelling since the area affected were proclaimed watershed area.
It also recommended identification of the owner of heavy equipment such as dump trucks and backhoe seen by the team during their ocular visit at the watershed area while asking the DOTC-LTO to verify, identify plate numbers of said heavy equipment.
The team also discovered hauling of mineral ores and illegally cut logs or lumbers from the watershed area.
In as early as 2007 and later part of 2008 and early part this year, Butuan City Water District (BCWD) personnel discovered rampant cutting of trees, blasting for mining exploration in the watershed area.
They claimed they brought the matter to the DENR, Butuan City Government and other concerned government agencies.
The fact finding team is composed of officials, representatives from government agencies like, the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP), DENR, Mines and Geo-Sciences Bureau, Environmental Management Bureau, National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), CENRO-Butuan, Environment and Natural Resources Office-LGU Butuan City, Office of the City Mayor, Roman Catholic-led Caraga Conference for Peace and Development (CCPD) and the Butuan City Water District (BCWD).
Earlier, officials of the Butuan City Water District (BCWD) headed by Engineer Anselmo Sangtian had filed charges of negligence, Grave Misconduct, Refusal to Perform Official Duties against top DENR officials in the region headed by OIC DENR-Caraga Regional Executive Director Edilberto Sumcio Buiser.
The water firm officials claimed they have been complaining to DENR, the lead government agency to protect watershed areas in the country, about presence of heavy equipment in the protected area that leads to illegal construction road, illegal mining and illegal cutting of trees within the protected watershed area.
In their reply affidavits to Ombudsman-Mindanao
The DENR officials said they are made as scapegoats by Engineer Sangtian for his inefficiency predicament as General Manager of the Butuan Water District.
But Sangtian in a press conference here yesterday held at the BCWD conference room told newsmen that he is only doing his job as General Manager or else if he will not report the rampant illegal mining, logging and illegal road construction in the watershed area he will be charged for neglect of duty.
He said DENR being lead agency to protect watershed area all over the country should have conducted impartial investigation, identified and prosecuted culprits in environmental destructions and convened task force consisting of different government agencies to verify BCWD findings.
Sangtian said the watershed area is the only source of potable water supply to more than 300,000 city residents of Butuan of which they cater and nearby environs
“Now that the composite team itself created by NCIP found all my reports were true, I felt vindicated after all these years of complaining”, Sangtian said. He said illegalities in said watershed areas started in as early as 2002 but stopped then resurrected in 2005 then stopped and resurrected again.
“Water is life and if we as normal minded people cannot protect the source of water that maintains life then what is in stored for us in the future?”, Sangtian.
Sangtian agreed that those culprits and masterminds in the watershed destruction including concerned government personnel and officials who failed to protect the sacred protected watershed areas against its eventual destruction must be dealt with according to the law.
Then President Fidel Valdez Ramos in September 4, 1999 signed Proclamation No. 1076 declaring the 4,367.44 hectares comprising areas of Butuan City , two towns of Agusan del Norte province, Cabadbaran and RTR as Protected Watershed and Forest Reserve Areas.
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