Baguio water source repaired as DOJ sues solon

BAGUIO CITY—A water source here had been repaired after it was damaged by erosion attributed to an illegal forest road excavation for which the Department of Justice (DOJ) had sued Baguio Rep. Nicasio Aliping Jr. in court.

POLICEMEN escort a representative of the Court of Appeals during an inspection at a section of Mt. Sto. Tomas in Tuba town in Benguet, where a road was built through the forest and damaged Baguio City’s water source. RICHARD BALONGLONG/INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

The Baguio Water District (BWD) is waiting for strong rain to test the rehabilitated Amliang spring that was buried in debris allegedly from a 2-kilometer excavation through the sides of Mt. Cabuyao at the Sto. Tomas watershed in 2014, according to Salvador Royeca, BWD general manager.

Last year, BWD had charged Aliping and three contractors with polluting the springs that supply water to 20 Baguio communities and the Poblacion village in neighboring Tuba town in Benguet.

Last week, the DOJ filed an environmental lawsuit against Aliping and the contractors, based on a 2014 complaint from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that the illegal road project uprooted and destroyed trees in the area.

Aliping said he took no part in the construction of the road. He said he would defend himself in court.

The spring source will be essential as the dry season brings less rains to the summer capital, said Royeca.

BWD produces 65,000 cubic meters each day during the monsoon season to meet the daily needs of 55,000 cubic meters. But during summer, BWD produces 48,000 cubic meters each day, so some villages receive rationed supplies.

During peak tourist season, BWD has to address a 20 to 30 percent rise in demand, according to BWD records.

Charles Carame, chief of BWD’s engineering division, said the water utility shouldered the P32,000 cost of rehabilitating a dam where water collected from the Amliang springs is stored.

The rehabilitation, however, does not end with a single repair, Carame said. Rain could again erode the soil, so work crews will be required to continue cleaning and restoring BWD pipelines in the area, he said.

Last year, Aliping offered to share the cost of repairing the damage, but Royeca said BWD proceeded with the rehabilitation work without coordinating with the lawmaker.

The DOJ decision to proceed with the charges was reported last week.

Assistant State Prosecutor Gilmarie Fe Pacamarra found probable cause to charge Aliping, citing eight reasons, among them, the lawmaker’s admission that he was developing a property he bought inside the watershed.

Since the forests surrounding Mt. Sto. Tomas have been declared part of a watershed since 1940, Aliping could not have legally claimed land there, the DOJ said.

The DOJ also concluded that Aliping had been aware about the excavations based on an exchange of letters he had with Tuba Mayor Florencio Bentrez.

Bentrez asked Aliping in May last year to stop the excavations and to repair the mountain wall, following complaints from BWD and Benguet Gov. Nestor Fongwan. Jhoanna Marie Buenaobra, Inquirer Northern Luzon