DILG backs moratorium on high-rise building construction in Baguio

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Monday said it supported a Baguio City local government proposal for a one-year moratorium on the construction of high-rise buildings in the locality.

“The city is now heavily congested and it’s taking so much toll on the environment," DILG Secretary Eduardo Año explained in a statement. "The city’s environmental condition is now a priority concern of the interagency task force headed by Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu.”

The DILG chief noted that a draft Executive Order on the moratorium has been submitted to the Office of the President.

He added that the order would impose a one-year cessation on the construction of skyscrapers and the cutting of trees, except those which were already dead and causing danger to life and property.

Año said the draft EO also included a funding component for priority rehabilitation projects such as the upgrading and expansion of the city’s sewerage treatment system.

“The city needs to pause, breathe and be healed because of over-development," the DILG Secretary added."The proposed EO will pave the way for a reevaluation of the city’s urban development planning in order to consider the impact on the environment.”

Año also took the opportunity to praise Magalong for his effort to preserve and enlarge the city’s remaining 30 percent of forest cover.

The secretary was also confident that Magalong would be able to solve the city's watershed depletion, traffic, and rising temperatures problems.

Meanwhile, DILG Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said the department, through the local government of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), would work closely with the city government and the Department of Natural Resources-CAR in mapping out strategic actions to address the massive problems on dwindling water supply, tree cutting, solid waste management, and over-development.

“Our target is to ensure that Baguio City’s beauty is well-preserved so that every time local and foreign tourists go there to unwind and recharge, they can all take refuge in the city’s clear blue skies, lush green mountains, towering pine trees, and very hospitable climate,” said Malaya. — DVM, GMA News