Manila Bay advocates oppose reclamation plan in Parañaque

The famed Manila Bay sunset. Photo by DON LEJANO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Manila Bay advocates are once again up in arms over a newly presented 300-hectare reclamation plan in southern Metro Manila.

In a press statement, groups led by the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya, The National Strength of the Fishermen’s Movement of the Philippines) urged President Aquino and the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources to block the Parañaque Manila Bay reclamation proposal by SM Land Inc., which was endorsed in September by the city council.

Last September 26, the council approved Resolution No. 13-066 authorizing Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez “to accept the unsolicited proposal of SM Land Inc” to develop an additional 200 hectares of Manila Bay in the city, and enter into a joint venture agreement.

In 2012, the previous city administration already approved a proposal by SM Land Inc. to reclaim 100 hectares of Manila Bay in the city.

In a phone interview on Tuesday, city administrator and Bids and Awards Committee chair Fernando “Ding” Soriano confirmed the submission by SM Land Inc. of a reclamation proposal for a 300-hectare “commercial area” along Manila Bay. He added SM Land Inc. would foot the estimated P35 billion to P40 billion cost of the project.

The city council, in its September resolution, said the reclamation “will certainly be beneficial to the city government and its people in terms of taxes and employment.”

It added that the city government would get a share of 630,000 square meters of land in the reclamation, though SM Land Inc. offered 51 percent or 150 hectares of the project as “government share.”

But Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France contradicted the council’s position, saying the widespread reclamations in Metro Manila must be halted “to stop the wholesale killing of people’s livelihood and the environment, prevent disasters and other man-made and natural calamities in the near future.”

France also urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources not to issue an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) to the Parañaque government, upon the signing of a joint venture with SM Land Inc.

The council, in its resolution, had dismissed such fears as “imaginary.” “The reclamation project will not be contiguous to any land and will have a 200-meter channel which is more than enough to accommodate rainwater brought about by a heavy downpour,” it read.

In a statement on Tuesday, Pamalakaya also hit the speed by which the Parañaque council approved the proposal, which the city government only received on September 11.

“Imagine, it only took 15 days for the councilors of Parañaque to study or consider the economic and environmental implications of a large-scale reclamation project. This is preposterous and something sinister appeared to have happened without the knowledge of affected citizens and the general public,” the statement read.

Soriano, however, said the plan would have a long way to go before approval, the signing of a joint venture agreement, bidding off, and implementation. SM Land Inc. has proposed a seven-year project implementation period, he said.

“There is only a resolution, but the proposal has not yet been approved [by the Mayor]. It will still have to pass a tedious public consultation,” Soriano said.

Soriano said the proposal would still undergo the “Swiss Challenge” proceedings, in which SM Land Inc. would have to convince the city government and residents that the project “will be advantageous to Parañaque,” and that they could comply with regulations set by the city and the Philippine Reclamation Authority.

The public consultation notice will be published in a broadsheet “so anyone who wants to challenge the project can do so,” according to Soriano.

“There’s nothing to worry about yet. As BAC chairman, I give my assurance that everything will go through due process,” Soriano said.