By now, many are aware of the resort constructed within the famous Chocolate Hills in Bohol. The controversy started when a video of the Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort circulated on Facebook eliciting negative comments from netizens. This prompted authorities to look into the matter. But why only now? The existence of the resort is no secret. In its Facebook page, the resort advertises itself as “a tourist destination located in the midst of the towering chocolate hills in the area”.
The Chocolate Hills has been declared a protected area since July 1, 1997, under Proclamation No. 1037. It covers the one thousand seven hundred seventy-six (1,776) chocolate hills, more or less and the areas within, around, and surrounding them located in the municipalities of Carmen, Batuan and Sagbayan, Bilar, Valencia and Sierra Bullones, Province of Bohol. The resort indicated its address as Libertad Norte, Sagbayan, Bohol, which placed it within the protected area.
The proclamation states that no activity of any kind including quarrying, which will alter, mutilate, deface, or destroy the hills shall be conducted. All public and private lands within, around and surrounding the hills shall not be converted to other purposes which is inconsistent with the objectives of the proclamation. The rights and interests of landowners within the Chocolate Hills before Proclamation No. 1037 would “generally be recognized and respected” but restrictions and regulations are still imposed.
After the issue erupted, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued a cease-and-desist order (CDO) against the resort on March 14. Prior to this, a closure order against the resort was issued by the agency on September 6, 2023. A Notice of Violation (NOV) to the project proponent was likewise sent to the resort on January 22, 2024, for operating without an environmental compliance certificate (ECC). Does the issuance of the CDO and closure order suggest that construction of resorts within the protected area is prohibited? Let’s see.
The Resort Manager in an interview said they got a go-signal from the Protected Areas Management Board (PAMB). The PAMB, according to RA No. 11038 or the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 2018, is tasked to oversee the management of protected areas. It is composed of the DENR Regional Executive Director (RED) who has jurisdiction over the area and representatives from the municipal government, barangays, at least three (3) non-government organizations/local community organizations and concerned government agencies.
In February 2018, PAMB issued Resolution No. 1, s. 2018, endorsing the resort project subject to certain conditions including an ECC. In July 2022, PAMB issued another endorsement on the proposal to transfer the development of amenities and facilities from its initial project sites near the Chocolate Hills protected zone to the resort’s parking area. Meanwhile, the resort obtained a building permit in 2020, and subsequently, a business permit, from the Sagbayan municipality citing the PAMB endorsement as basis.
From the information that has surfaced so far, it would appear that resorts, or other structures for that matter, are allowed within the Chocolate Hills subject to certain conditions. Portions of titled flatlands in between the hills are open to multiple use as can be read from one of the conditions of the PAMB resolution allowing the Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort: “Function hall and all other infrastructure should be erected and/or constructed within the 20% area from the base of the hill, which is considered the multiple use zone, following sustainable infrastructure design”. Perhaps the basis for this condition is the Management Plan of the protected area which is required under Section 7 of RA 11038. If structures of any kind are prohibited, then this plan should be revisited.