Sunwest project in Mayon danger zone lacks permit
A composite image of the response of the DENR and LRA to Albay Gov. Noel Rosal. PHOTOS FROM GOVERNOR NOEL ROSAL AND INQUIRER FILE
MANILA, Philippines — The controversial fencing project in Camalig town has no Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) and the Land Registration Authority (LRA) has no record of ownership of the lot involved, which is inside the permanent danger zone (PDZ) of Mayon Volcano in Albay.
Governor Noel Rosal revealed these on Facebook last week as he shared the response of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of Bicol Region and the Registry of Deeds in Albay to his letters seeking clarification over Sunwest Inc.’s almost two-kilometer fencing project in Barangay Tumpa.
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Geri Geronimo Sañez, officer-in-charge of the regional office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said in a letter dated Oct. 16 that based on its online verification system and official records, “no ECC has been issued […] to the said fence construction project” on Lot No. 7745.
The lot, which is located within the volcano’s PDZ, is not registered with the LRA, as well, with the Registry of Deeds pointing out in a letter dated Oct. 16 that it does not have available records of the lot number based on the Certified True Copy of the Index Book for the Municipality of Camalig.
As Rosal said, “we will now call an investigation on what to do with the existing fence,” although construction work by Sunwest Inc., which was co-founded by resigned Ako Bicol Rep. Elizaldy Co, has already ceased “after the discovery” by the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office.
The local government of Camalig, in a letter dated Oct. 14, had told Rosal that its Municipal Engineering Office that no permit application was filed for the fencing project and that no such permit was issued by the office to the construction company, which was on the list of top 15 contractors that secured most flood control projects all over the country since 2022.
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The area 6 kilometers from the volcano is closed to all activities, with very limited regulated tourism activities allowed with strict regulation and is managed by the Mount Mayon Natural Park protected area management board, while the core zones of the cultural properties are managed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Legazpi through their respective parishes.
