A DAM of the sugar milling firm Central Azucarera de la Carlota Inc. (Caci) in Barangay Nagasi, La Carlota City, has collapsed and reportedly spilled over wastewater, causing fishkill among rivers of neighboring Pontevedra town.

Engineer Desiderio Figueroa, head of the Provincial Environment Management Unit of Negros Occidental (Pemuno), under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environment Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) in Western Visayas, said his office received reports about the incident Tuesday afternoon, May 8.

Figueroa said upon conducting an inspection Wednesday, May 9, Pemuno saw some possible manifestations of pollution including discoloration of water and existence of dead fish in the river.

However, Pemuno cannot yet conclude or ascertain the cause pending the result of the water analysis conducted by an accredited laboratory in Bacolod City.

"We conducted the water sampling from downstream to upstream areas the following day after we received the report. The result is expected to come out within the next seven to 10 days," he added.

Collapse

Caci, in a statement Wednesday, said it is closely monitoring the water levels of the impounding dams at Barangay Najalin in La Carlota City.

The sugar mill, a subsidiary of Roxas Holdings Inc. (RHI), said the management is looking into the incident that apparently caused the break of the southern wall of its one dam.

Ramonito Lastima, head of Caci's Administration Division, said as a result of the collapse, water from the first dam spilled over to the second dam.

Lastima said nobody expects the dam will collapse as the structure was just rehabilitated last year.

"We are investigating the event and are looking into the integrity and quality of work in the rehabilitation done," he said, adding that "it is unfortunate that this event has caused concerns among our communities, but rest assured we will resolve this matter with urgency."

A joint team from the firm's Environmental Management Services and Factory Operations has put up sandbags to contain the leak as early as May 6.

Caci said it is currently conducting regular sampling of water among strategic areas of the river.

Also, they are continuously coordinating with the concerned local government unit, DENR, Department of Agriculture (DA), Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), and Bureau of Fish and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to ensure the implementation of other necessary protective measures.

Liability

As to the extent of damage, the DENR-EMB said it has yet to receive a report from the company or local government.

In terms of liability, Figueroa said his team will endorse the result of the water analysis to the Pollution Adjudication Board (PAB) in Manila, because PAB is responsible for determining the corresponding penalty for the sugar milling plant once proven to have liability on the incident.

Figueroa also warned residents to refrain from consuming dead fishes to avoid possible negative effect to health.

'Disaster'

Mayor Jose Benito Alonso said "this is another disastrous event" as it affects the livelihood of many town residents.

Alonso said the "pollution" it created has greatly affected five barangays in the locality which are being crossed by rivers connected with the firm's collapsed dam.

These are Barangays Don Salvador Benedicto, San Juan 1, 2 and 3, among others.

"It would take years for our rivers to recover," he said, adding that "this is really a disaster as most of our fishes were killed."

Before the collapse, the mayor said he already received reports from a personnel of Caci that its dam has leaked.

Alonso said he then alerted all fishpond owners, who were actually pumping in water to their ponds.

Some haciendas on the upland areas have also temporarily shut down their water pumps.

Alonso said the water discharged by the collapsed dam may have been treated as it has no foul odor, yet it is still not safe.

"The dam may have discharged huge volume as the water level in Candagit bridge has increased to at least one meter," he added.

Long-term solution

This is not the first time for a fishkill to happen in Pontevedra as two the same incidents were also reported early last year.

These were also attributed to the water contamination to the wastewater discharged by ethanol plant Roxol Bioenergy Corp. (RBC), another subsidiary of RHI also operating in Barangay Nagasi.

RBC, however, dismissed claims that the company’s ethanol plant caused the fishkill as it has instituted long-term plans and programs to comply with environmental laws.

But for Alonso, this has been a "repeating" event affecting mainly not the plants' host city but its neighboring town.

Alonso urged the DENR to provide a long-term solution to the problem like, maybe, the firm has to build a bigger dam to contain its wastes.

The mayor also said amid the recent fishkill incident, Caci should pay for the damage it has allegedly caused to the residents, and local fishing communities.