MANILA, Philippines—For over 10 years, residents living near a chemical manufacturing company in Project 6, Quezon City, have been complaining about its water emissions.

So far, the government agencies they have gone to for help have been unable to fix the problem.

Estrella Solidum, a retired University of the Philippines professor, and her neighbors said that for years, they have been asking Medgen Laboratories Inc. (MGLI) to treat its industrial wastewater, as required by law, before discharging it into the sewerage system.

The company manufactures contact lens lubricants and cleaners as well as pharmaceutical products.

According to Solidum, the wastewater emitted by Medgen drains out into Laguna Lake.

One of the agencies they approached, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, has “washed its hands” of the issue, she said.

In a letter-response to Solidum’s complaints in December, MMDA’s head of Flood Control and Sewerage Management Office, Baltazar Melgar, said that the “[MMDA] has no jurisdiction over pollution and/or any matter which affects the environment.”

The agency then referred the residents to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Solidum told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that she and her neighbors first complained of “shallow water seepage and flooding [in areas near their houses] from 1993 to 1995.”

Three separate investigations conducted by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), DENR and the Manila Water Corp. showed that the water came from the nearby Medgen compound.

The three agencies also ran tests that showed the water contained soap bubbles and oil.

Although the MMDA said it has no jurisdiction over the matter, Solidum said that between 2004 and 2007, the MMDA—through Melgar and District Operations Engineer for Q.C. Nolland Baduel—asked for information from the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) about Medgen’s discharge pipe.

In its letters to the LLDA, copies of which were obtained by the Inquirer, the MMDA asked whether the discharge pipe had a clearance from LLDA. Medgen, it appeared, had tapped into the Mindanao Avenue drainage since 1998 and the clearance would be the basis of their action on the discharge pipe.

The LLDA, which monitors discharges that end up in Laguna Lake, said the chemical firm has not applied for a clearance.

Medgen, for its part, called Solidum’s claims “unfounded,” insisting that it has complied with the environmental requirements set for manufacturing firms.

“There is no problem. We comply with all the regulatory requirements. If such was really the case, the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) would have closed us by now,” said Gil Divinagracia, the company president, in an interview.

He said that the company treats its wastewater before disposing of it, adding that regulatory agencies regularly check their facilities.