Poe on alleged human waste dumping: Philippines not China's toilet

Senators on Tuesday urged the government to take actions against China over its alleged dumping of human waste in the West Philippine Sea.

Senator Grace Poe said the reported activities were “infuriating and disgusting,” adding that it adds insult to the country’s sovereignty and those whose livelihoods depend on the water resources.

“Hindi ito gagawin ng kahit sinong matinong kapitbahay. This adds insult to injury. We are not the dumping site of any country, let alone by a nation laying claims on our territory,” she said.

“China treating us as its toilet is a clear violation of both international and local environmental laws," she added.

Poe cited the Stockholm Declaration that requires all states to :take all possible steps to prevent pollution of the seas by substances that are liable to create hazards to human health, to harm living resources and marine life, to damage amenities or to interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea."

Poe also cited local laws such as the Clean Water Act and the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, which both penalize such acts.

“If the laws of men are not enough, basic laws of human decency demand that we do not submit to this debasing treatment,” she said.

Poe pointed out that China’s act of dumping waste in the area shows that they know that the WPS is not theirs otherwise they would have respected the ecological value of the fishing ground.

“We can only hope that this comes as a wake up call to the administration on the stinking reality that China gives no respect to international law, whether it be our territorial or environmental rights,” she said.

“The government must strongly condemn this and demand the immediate cessation of any waste-dumping activities in the area. Anything less would be unacceptable,” she added.

Senator Francis Pangilinan also urged the government to stop being “subservient” to China and its interests.

He said that the government should defend the national interest, adding that “this is how China rewards cowardice and subservience.”

Senate foreign relations panel chair Aquilino Pimentel III, for his part, said that the government can enforce environmental laws within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ.)

Senator Francis Tolentino suggested to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to launch an investigation immediately as he noted that the area was part of the municipality of Kalayaan in Palawan.

The investigation will determine the accuracy of the reports, he said.

“Thereafter, if it is determined that state actors or state-sponsored activities were involved, the Department of Foreign Affairs should take the appropriate action by invoking the Convention on Biological Diversity, as the anthropogenic pressures on the area will impact on the coral reefs and other vulnerable ecosystems which the international community aims to protect,” he added.

Apart from the four senators, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto asked the DENR to investigate the matter and the DFA to study filing a diplomatic protest.

On Monday, Liz Derr, founder and chief executive officer of Simularity, which specializes in geospatial analysis and provides satellite data imagery, revealed that Chinese ships have been dumping raw sewage every day for several years on reefs, creating harmful "chlorophyll a blooms" in the waters.

Showing satellite images in the last five years, Derr said effluent from Chinese ships are causing elevated concentrations of Chlorophyll-a leading to "a cascade of reef damage that will take decades to recover even with active mitigation."

“When the ships don’t move, the poop piles up,” she said.  “The damage to the reefs in the last five years is visible and dramatic.”—LDF, GMA News