Senate bill regulating establishment of crematoriums filed amid COVID-19

A bill seeking to regulate the establishment and operation of crematoriums in the Philippines has been filed in the Senate as the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in changes in the country's burial practices.

Senator Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr.  authored Senate Bill No. 1806 as he acknowledged that cremation is "slowly becoming acceptable to more Filipinos, who previously favor the traditional burial rites, due to practical reasons and restrictions imposed in the new normal."

"Some cities have also built their own public crematoriums as a response to space limitations of the public cemeteries and to offer alternatives to families who cannot afford the customary burial service," he added.

Revilla said his bill seeks to promote public health and protection of the environment by ensuring that the process of application, approval, and inspection of crematoriums are institutionalized.

Under the proposed "Crematories Regulation Act," the cremating facility shall be within the confines of an established cemetery containing not less than eight hectares or within the confines of a plot of land approved for the location of a crematory by the city or municipality council.

"No crematory shall be located within the 150 meters of any residential structure or land used for residential purposes not owned by the owner of the crematory," the bill read.

Consultations among stakeholders shall also be made prior to the construction of a crematorium.

Requirements for its establishment must be submitted in compliance with the Code on Sanitation of the Philippines and the Philippine Clean Air Act of 1999.

The proposed law mandates the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to institute antipollution measures to control the air contaminants that the cremation processes produce.

The bill likewise states that crematoriums shall provide logistics and transport of the human remains if death is related to communicable diseases, upon designation and with the assistance of the local government unit.

In April, Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases spokesperson Karlo Nograles said the Cabinet officials agreed that the cadavers of patients who succumbed to COVID-19 must be cremated within 12 hours after death.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources said in June that its Environmental Management Bureau is streamlining the process to expedite the opening of more crematoriums in the country amid the pandemic.—AOL, GMA News