LEYTE Fourth District Representative Richard Gomez has urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Eastern Visayas (DENR 8), along with the local government of Palompon, to rehabilitate and protect the Palompon Watershed Forest Reserve (PWFR) after receiving reports that its condition has significantly deteriorated.
The congressman made the call after the DENR’s Protected Area Suitability Assessment (Pasa) showed that much of the watershed’s natural vegetation had been converted into farmlands, with several residential structures built in the area -- causing fragmentation of water sources and a decline in biodiversity.
The assessment also revealed problems with the water quality in the Sabang and Agbanga Rivers, including high phosphate and fecal coliform levels that pose health risks to residents.
“Kasi ang nasira na doon yung tubig, nasira doon yung forest, yung flora and fauna nasira. We have to rehabilitate that, hindi pwede na ang sabihin natin eh kasi pumasok na ang tao pumasok na yung commercialism, sige pwede na nating kalimotan gawing protected area. That’s the wrong approach. The proper approach that since we were here, we should further protect our environment. Dapat ganun ang mindset natin sa gobyerno,” said Gomez.
(The water is already polluted, the forest destroyed, and the flora and fauna are gone. We have to rehabilitate that. We can’t say that just because people and commercial activities have entered, we can forget about making it a protected area. That’s the wrong approach. The proper mindset should be that since we are already here, we must protect the environment even more. That’s what the government’s mindset should be.)
He added that the government should support local residents by providing livelihood programs to encourage their participation in protecting the watershed.
The congressman refuted claims, particularly from the LGU, that keeping the watershed under protection would result in the displacement of residents.
“Aalagaan nila ang lugar because they know that they are making a living out of it,” he added.
(They will take care of the place because they know they are making a living out of it.)
The PWFR covers the municipalities of Palompon, Matag-ob, and Villaba, spanning 5,653.57 hectares.
Gomez warned that if the Palompon Watershed Forest Reserve is left unprotected, it would not only affect Palompon’s water supply but also impact nearby areas, including Ormoc City.
An inspection in the area also discovered waste from a poultry farm reportedly owned by the Oñate family.
It can be recalled that in 1988, then-President Corazon C. Aquino declared the PWFR as a protected area with 25 percent designated as forest land. However, in 2017, the Palompon Comprehensive Land Use Plan was revised, removing parts of the PWFR and declaring an industrial zone within the protected area.
Within this industrial zone lie the DBSN Breeding Farm and a waste dump site for chicken waste and sludge buried in Lot 5150.
The DBSN Breeding Farm is reportedly owned by Palompon Mayor Ramon Oñate and his wife, who also serves as vice mayor.
By law, such activities are strictly prohibited within a protected watershed.
In response, Gomez has filed a bill in Congress seeking to maintain the protected status of the PWFR to prevent further exploitation and environmental degradation. (AYB)