MWSS vows to comply with SC order on Manila Bay pollution, actions taken

The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) on Friday said it will follow the order of the Supreme Court for them to report in oral arguments some concerns in Manila Bay.

“We have to look on the SC order, and we will definitely comply on the order of the Supreme Court,” MWSS spokesperson Patrick Dizon told GMA News Online in a message.

“MWSS is regularly submitting report to SC (every quarter) of our projects and their accomplishments,” Dizon added.

Recently, the High Tribunal  ordered government agencies to report in oral arguments on the pollution in Manila Bay, the steps being taken, the reclamation projects, and their environmental impact.

In an en banc session, the SC resolved to conduct oral arguments as regards the case of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, et al. (petitioners) v. Concerned Residents of Manila Bay, et al. (respondents) and Akbayan Citizen’s Action Party (intervenor).

The concerned agencies were ordered to report on:

• their measurement benchmarks of the pollution in Manila Bay;
• current government strategies being implemented to comply with their mandate to clean up, rehabilitate, and preserve Manila Bay, and restore and maintain its waters to SB level (Class B Sea waters per Water Classification Tables under Department of Environment and Natural Resources [DENR] Order No. 34 [1990]) to make them fit for swimming, skin-diving, and other forms of contact recreation;
• realistic targets for the next five years; and
• ongoing reclamations and their respective environmental impact assessments especially their effect on pollution.

The agencies covered by the SC order include: the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Education, Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Budget and Management, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine National Police-Maritime Group, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and MWSS.—AOL, GMA Integrated News