Wednesday, May 07, 2008 Council junks petition against Watershed Code By Grace L. Plata
THE Davao City Council has denied the request of quarry operators to suspend the implementation of the Watershed Code, especially the portion that bans quarrying in protected areas.
The Davao City Quarry Masters Cooperative and residents of Purok 9 Sabang in Barangay Tamugan, in two separate letters, asked the City Council to "hold in abeyance" the implementation of the Watershed Code, as well as to hold further studies on Article 9 of the code for possible amendments.
Article 9 of the Watershed Code bans the "exploitation of quarrying resources and commercial sand and gravel resources" in environmentally critical areas, as these are recharge areas of the city's aquifers or lowland water sources. These areas are protected under the law to ensure sustainability of the city's potable water source.
That the quarry operators want this provision held in abeyance is a tacit admission on their part that they are quarrying in areas that are supposed to be protected zones.
In a resolution passed during Tuesday's session, the body denied the request and at the same time referred the matter of amendments to the joint executive-legislative committee formed by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte through Executive Order 1 of 2008.
The joint committee is tasked to craft the implementing rules and regulations of the Watershed Code, which was passed in 2007.
