Residents of the Barangay Camanjac in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental are not giving up on their campaign to stop the establishment of a sanitary landfill near the Okoy River.
Fr. Sulpicio Vincoy, parish priest of Camanjac, reiterated over the weekend that his constituents are not cowed by the pronouncements of the local government unit (LGU) of Dumaguete City that it has already complied/met with a number of requirements set by the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) for the putting up of a sanitary landfill.
The city government had announced that it has found a 3.5 hectare lot owned by the Divinagracias in Barangay Candauay, the village adjacent to Camanjac, that is “suitable” for the solid waste facility.
But, according to Fr. Vincoy, they have certain issues against the proposal, such as what they believe would be hazards for both humans and the environment emanating from the facility.
For one, the priest pointed out what he believes are discrepancies between a study in the early 2000s about the area being prone to flooding and the current supposed study that the area and its surroundings are safe and suitable for the landfill site.
As the city continues with its compliance of the requirements for the facility, such as the submission of an Environmental Impact Assessment and afterward, securing an Environmental Compliance Certificate from the DENR, the protesters from Candauay are not giving up on their stand.
Derek Erames, a resident of Candauay, announced that one of the legal remedies they are considering is to file an injunction for a temporary restraining order against the city.
They are hoping that the DENR, the Environmental Management Board, and the Mines and GeoSciences and Bureau will invite representation from the local community when they return for further inspection of the site, said Fr. Vincoy.
He expressed surprise over a supposed report dated last December when the group from the DENR in Region 7 had conducted its inspection last month.
During that activity, there was no representation from the community, he said. (Judy Flores Partlow/PNA)
