By Mary Judaline Partlow/PNA
DUMAGUETE CITY – Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo has sternly warned commercial establishments of strict sanctions if they are found to be continuously contributing to the pollution of major rivers in the province.
The governor issued the warning during Tuesday afternoon’s “Interagency meeting for the RIVERs for Life Project”, spearheaded by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), at a local hotel here.
RIVERs stands for Recognizing Individuals/Institutions towards Vibrant and Enhanced Rivers.
The project will focus on cleaning up the province’s rivers and will be piloted in the Panamangan River in Bais City, Banica River in Dumaguete City, and Sicopong River in Sta. Catalina.
Dumping his prepared speech for an impromptu one, the governor lashed out at a sugar milling company in Bais City after having watched a video slide presentation of the current state of the Panamangan River.
“The sugar central has to follow specific regulations so that they will not be closed. And we will not hesitate to close it if they will continue to do it,” Degamo warned.
He was reacting to slides that showed waste from the sugar mill allegedly being dumped into the Panamangan River, and the one that caught his ire was a latrine with its waste going straight into the river.
The photo was taken just hours before the launch of the project.
Degamo said the sugar mill has one month to clean the area after which he will make a visit and take photos. “Ug mao gihapon kahugaw, pasayloanay na gyud lamang ta, ato gyud nga e-implement ang existing laws (If the area is still dirty, sorry,but we have to implement the laws) because as governor, I have to protect my people from these hazards,” he said.
Barangay captains in the area traversed by the Panamangan River were also directed by the provincial chief executive to address the problem on pollution.
“We also have a program on Zero Defecation plus malnutrition concerns (so) let us all coordinate, cooperate and unite so that we can solve this problem,” Degamo said.
He also urged the barangay captains to come and see him at his office if they have problems implementing anti-pollution programs, adding they have nothing to fear because he will support them.
The governor’s warning also goes out to all other commercial establishments that are contributing to the pollution problems of the other two rivers, Banica and Sicopong, which have deteriorated over the years.
At the same time, Degamo also challenged the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) headed by Nestor M. Canda, to look into the current state of the rivers in the province, especially those that are being piloted in the Rivers for Life Project.
“Nianhi gyud ko aron akong ipaabot ninyo (I came here just to reach out to you), especially (to) the commercial establishments that I am sending a strong message to all of you. I am not joking. I am the governor. You rehabilitate that river and I will check in one month,” he said.
Degamo reiterated several times that he will not hesitate to have a commercial establishment shut down “if you will continue to worsen (the state of) the river.”
Canda, meanwhile, said the DENR-Negros Oriental envisions seeing the Panamangan, Banica and Sicopong Rivers restored close to their original state.
For now, however, he said these three bodies of water are categorized as Class C, with critical level of pollution.
“And the DENR agreed that we have to do something about all Class C rivers,” he said.
Canda said Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu has a marching order for Central Visayas and other areas in the country to focus on cleaning the rivers.
He stressed, however, that taking care of the environment is not just the job of the DENR but everyone’s role.
