SC issues writ of kalikasan over Samal Island-Davao City bridge project

The Supreme Court (SC) has issued a writ of kalikasan in connection with the Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) project, the high tribunal's spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting said Tuesday.

With the writ in place, Ting said the respondents in the petition are directed to file a verified return within a non-extendible period of 10 days from service of the writ. 

A writ of kalikasan is a legal remedy under Philippine jurisprudence that protects a person's constitutional right to a balanced and healthy ecology.

Ting, however, clarified that the SC is not directing the government to stop the project's construction.

She said the SC referred the petitioner's prayer for a temporary protection order (TEPO) to the Court of Appeals in Cagayan de Oro.

"If TEPO is granted, then construction will be stopped temporarily," Ting told reporters.

This stemmed from a petition asking the SC to order the respondents to permanently cease and desist from the construction of the SIDC.

They argued that the construction will result in irreversible damage to corals in Paradise Reef and the Hizon Marine Protected Area.

The petitioners are Ecoteneo Director Carmela Marie Santos, Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability Executive Director Mark Peñalver, Dyesabel Philippines chairperson Marvelous Camilo, and the Sustainable Davao Movement.

Meanwhile, the respondents are the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Samal Island Protected Landscape and Seascape Protected Area Management Board, and the China Road and Bridge Corporation.

Upon completion, the SIDC will be a toll-free, four-lane extradosed bridge spanning 4.76 kilometers, linking Davao City at the R. Castillo–Daang Maharlika Junction to the Samal Circumferential Road.

On Saturday, the DPWH said the progress rate of the SIDC was at 38%.

The project is being funded through Official Development Assistance (ODA) from China.

The DPWH Unified Project Management Office – Bridges Management Cluster (UPMO-BMC) is the project’s implementing agency, with China Road and Bridge Corporation as the contractor. — VDV, GMA Integrated News