Stop the construction of the Kaliwa Dam in Quezon province unless a proper review of the China-funded project is done.
So stated the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in a pastoral statement titled “I Look Up to the Mountains,” issued Thursday by CBCP president, Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles.
“We call on the concerned government agencies and other proponents of the Kaliwa Dam project to stop the implementation unless proper review is done to correct its flawed procedures,” the statement said.
“For the sake of the common good, we strongly recommend that ecologically sustainable alternatives be carefully considered as proposed by experts in responding to the challenges of the water crisis in Metro Manila, without destroying the precious culture and sustainable future of our Dumagat-Remontado tribes,” the statement added.
According to Valles, the Church is not against development “as long as it does not sacrifice the common good in the name of progress.”
The project will also submerge almost 300 hectares of forest ecosystems in the Sierra Madre, endangering 126 endemic and endangered species of plants and wildlife, and destroying the biodiversity of the area, the CBCP said.
It added that more than 100,000 people downstream will also be adversely affected by possible flooding.
President Duterte earlier said that the project was the “last resort” for Metro Manila’s water shortage and that those affected by the project would be relocated.