The Supreme Court has stopped the Aklan government from pursuing its P1-billion project to reclaim tens of hectares of Boracay Island and Caticlan, citing a need to address environmental concerns.
 
The high court ordered Aklan provincial authorities hold consultations with stakeholders and secure clearances from local government units.
 
Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, who wrote the decision, ruled that Aklan and its contractors stop the first phase of the project covering 2.64 hectares of foreshore in Caticlan, Malay.
 
The latest ruling converted a June 2012 environmental protection order against the project into a writ of continuing mandamus.
 
"The writ of continuing mandamus 'permits the court to retain jurisdiction after judgment in order to ensure the successful implementation of the reliefs mandated under the court's decision, and in order to do this, the court may compel the submission of compliance reports from the respondent government agencies as well as avail of other means to monitor compliance with its decision," the court said.
 
Under the writ, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) must re-assess the environmental impact of the project and review its earlier classification of the project as a single instead of a co-located project.
 
The two parts of the project would cover 36.82 hectares in Caticlan on the mainland, and 3.18 hectares on Boracay Island. It includes the P260-million rehabilitation and expansion of the port and passenger terminal, and the establishment of a commercial building and wellness center.
 
The case against the project was filed by the Boracay Foundation Inc., composed of some 160 Boracay-based businessmen and resident.
 
The petitioners claimed DENR allowed Aklan to go ahead with the project even without having complied with environmental and local government requirements.
 
They cited a study by the Marine Environmental Resource Foundation and the University of Philippines Marine Science Institute which showed how the project will affect the flow of the tides between Caticlan and Boracay and further erode the Boracay sands.
 
The Aklan government did not consult with local government units and other stakeholders before the start of the project.
 
Local officials of Malay and Caticlan were supposedly against the project. — VS, GMA News