TABUK CITY, Kalinga – The more or less ten mature acacia trees along the provincial road bisecting barangays Bulanao Norte and Bulanao which were felled the other week by the contractor of the ongoing widening project on the road are now the subject of an environmental complaint with the Regional Trial Court (RTC) here.
Through Civil Case No. 1031, lawyers Minerva Taguinod and Errol Comafay have alleged that this violative of their and the public’s constitutional rights to balanced and healthful ecology and P.D. No. 705 (Revised Forestry Code) and R.A. No. 3571 which prohibits the cutting, destroying and injuring of plants and growing trees.
They further alleged that it appears the cutting was done without the necessary permits because no such permit was posted as required by law.
Acused are the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) of Tabuk City represented by the Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer, the Environment and Natural Resources Office of the Kalinga province represented by the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer and John Does who are the unidentified men who cut the trees.
The complainants alleged that after cutting the trees, the logs were hauled by trucks by those who cut the trees.
The complainants prayed for the issuance of a Temporary Environmental Protection Order (TEPO) to compel the defendants “to ensure that no additional trees and plants would be illegally cut and destroyed;” investigate the case and identify the culprits and file criminal charges against them; to find out where the logs are and to take possession of such as mandated by Executive Order No. 23; and to determine if the chainsaws used were registered and if not, file the complaints against those responsible.
Alleging that the defendant offices were unlawfully negligent of their duty to prevent violations of environmental laws, the complainants prayed of the court to grant a Writ of Continuing Mandamus considering among others that the trees were planted along a major thoroughfare.
The complainants also asked the court to, among others, order the persons responsible to plant 100 trees for every tree they felled and see to it that these are properly taken care of.
They also asked the court to order the unidentified men who cut the trees and carted away the logs to turn over all the timber they cut to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
If the court will not restrain the contractor of the road widening project, the more or less 10 trees in the way of the additional lane on the southbound lane will also have to go.**By Estanislao Albano, Jr.
