21 bishops to Aquino: Rethink reclamations

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, his predecessor Gaudencio Rosales and 19 other bishops have expressed “deep reservations” over 38 planned real estate projects that would reshape the Manila Bay coastline, warning of social and environmental consequences.

In a Nov. 19 letter to President Aquino, the Church leaders invoked papal pronouncements calling for the protection of the environment, saying “the scientific, legal and moral basis of our opposition to the reclamation of Manila Bay echoes God’s message.”

With this collective statement, the bishops representing dioceses mostly in the bayside communities stand in the way of multibillion-peso development projects already approved or welcomed by local governments for their projected economic benefits.

“The Scriptures tell us in the Book of Genesis that after creating the heavens, the earth, the sea, and man and woman, God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good,” they noted.

They urged Mr. Aquino to “be with us in responding to the call of Pope Francis,” who they said had asked Catholics worldwide to be “protectors of God’s creations, protectors of one another and of the environment.”

The bishops cited 38 reclamation projects covering about 26,230 hectares of the bay, but said their immediate concerns were the planned reclamation of 300 ha in the cities of Las Piñas and Parañaque and 148 ha in Manila.

They noted that “even without these projects, former reclamation projects in these areas have resulted in disastrous flooding, especially in Las Piñas, Parañaque, Malabon, Navotas and many towns and cities in Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan and Pampanga that now have serious need for dredging of water bodies to enable water to flow more freely.”

Other signatories

“Should the decision to allow these projects be determined only by financial considerations?” they asked. “Will the projected economic gains sufficiently and justifiably compensate the damage in life, ecosystems and property in the future?”

It would be “wiser to boost tourism and cultural preservation by restoring old historical sites and buildings rather than build on reclaimed land to the detriment of the livelihood of the people and the environment,” they added.

The other signatories in the letter to the President were Manila Auxiliary Bishops Bernardino Cortez and Broderick Pabillo; Cubao (Quezon City) Bishop Honesto Ongtioco; Parañaque City Bishop Jesse Mercado; Pasig City Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara; Imus (Cavite province) Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista; San Pablo (Laguna) Bishop Buenaventura Famadico; Novaliches Bishop Antonio Tobias; Antipolo City Bishop Gabriel Reyes;

Malolos (Bulacan) Bishop Jose Oliveros; Caloocan Bishop Emeritus Deogracias Iñiguez; San Pablo Bishop Emeritus Leo Drona; Novaliches Bishop Emeritus Teodoro Bacani Jr.; Imus Bishop Emeritus Manuel Sobreviñas; Pasig Bishop Emeritus Francisco San Diego; Taytay (Rizal) Vicar Apostolic Edgardo Jaunich; Puerto Princesa (Palawan) Vicar Apostolic Pedro Arigo; Military Ordinary Leopoldo Tumulak; and Francisco de Leon, Apostolic Administrator of Caloocan City.

In defense of Solar City

Sought for comment on Thursday, a top executive of the company behind Solar City, the 148-ha reclamation project in Manila, defended the venture.

Gaudencio Rosales

“It is not a wanton and greedy business project aimed only at making profits,” said Edmundo Lim, vice president of Manila Goldcoast Development Corp. (MGDC). “It will help the City of Manila develop further … and definitely enhance both the business and tourism potentials of the country’s capital.”

Lim explained that “30 ha of the 148-ha project will go to the Philippine Reclamation Authority while the Manila City government will get 5 ha. The rest will go to the construction of roads and open parks, among others.”

“A significant portion of the project will be dedicated to environmental concerns,” he added.

Earlier, the MGDC executive also assured critics that Solar City “will not obstruct or hide from public view Manila Bay’s world-famous sunset” and that the plan did not include the building of casinos.

William Tieng, MGDC chair and chief executive officer, also urged detractors to “look at the bright side and accept the fact that it can be beneficial to the country if done properly and given the safety nets.”

He pointed to similar undertakings in Singapore, Hong Kong, China, United Arab Emirates and the Netherlands, among others, where he said “they used land reclamation as a front door to urban development.”

“There’s nothing wrong with converting a small portion of the bay into one of the best places to live, work or do business in the Philippines, if not Southeast Asia,” he said. “It will not adversely affect the marine environment because it’s envisioned to abide by international best practices and standards of development projects.”

“There is no truth to claims that reclamation projects cause flooding. In fact, they can reduce flooding like what they did in Holland,” he added.