Provincial environment code finally passed
LINGAYEN—The Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) approved last Monday a landmark legislation that seeks to regulate the use of the natural resources of the province, extending maximum protection against abuse.
SP Member Von Mark Mendoza, chairman on the committee one environment and author of the ordinance, heaved a sigh of relief after the proposal, which was first submitted six years ago, was finally passed as Provincial Ordinance No. 14-2012 or the Pangasinan Environment Code of 2012.
Governor Amado T. Espino, Jr., is expected to sign the ordinance into law.
He said the code was a collaborative work of different line government agencies including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Public Works and Highways, National Water Resources Board and various departments of the provincial government.
Among the salient features of the ordinance is a provision that requires proponents of environmentally critical projects such as mining, excavation, landfill and others to first secure a Provincial Environment Compliance Certificate (PCEC) prior to the Environmental Compliance Certificate being issued by DENR.
In sum, the proponents of such projects are required to comply with and observe terms of the province which has a major stake in the preservation of the environment before starting their projects.
The code also mandates the creation of a Provincial Environmental Office to oversee the compliance to the code.
Mendoza said the code will correct situations where local officials are often surprised to find an environmentally critical project being constructed without their prior knowledge and without consideration for the local environment.
At the same time, a provision for accountability was incorporated in the code penalizing all violators of environmental laws in the province, including government officials who fail to observe the provisions.
In case of conflicts, the environmental ordinances of the LGUs will prevail over the provincial environmental code, the latter being a general law while the former are special laws.
Board Member Alfonso Bince, Jr., a lawyer, agreed that the environmental code is a monumental ordinance of Pangasinan while SP Member Jeremy Agerico Rosario lauded Mendoza for painstakingly pushing it.
Mendoza has asked all the SP members to co-author the provincial environment code.
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