Cebu official on Manila Bay white sand project: ‘We were left in the dark’

An official of Cebu province on Monday revealed that the provincial board was “left in the dark” about the use of dolomites from the municipality of Alcoy for the government’s beautification of Manila Bay using synthetic white sand.

Provincial Board Member John Ismael Borgoni, who chairs the committee on environment conservation and natural resources, said the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) did not coordinate with them for the project.

“Kung hindi natin ni-raise or kinwestiyon 'yung legality ng dolomite quarry doon sa Alcoy, Cebu, hindi sana nag-issue ng statement ang [DENR’s] Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB),” he said in a radio interview.

“Hindi natin alam na may permit pala kasi we were left in the dark… Nalaman na lang namin na nando’n na sa Manila Bay po, parang it’s like we’ve been robbed, we’re caught by surprise. Parang gano’n lang kasi wala namang coordination,” he added.

Borgoni also said that the process of taking dolomites from Alcoy is already ongoing.

“Ang MGB na mismo, ‘yung DENR, sila ang nagsabing legal saka may permit galing sa kanila, so who are we to stop sa pagkuha ng dolomite. But feeling namin sa Cebu province na kinukunan lang kami na wala man lang at least kortesiya sa amin,” he said.

The DENR earlier maintained that the P389-million project will not affect the ecosystem.

The Department of Health, however, warned that inhalation of crushed dolomite can cause respiratory problems.—AOL, GMA News