Dream come true for environmental law professor
By Alcuin Papa
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 06:28:00 01/02/2009
MANILA, Philippines—For the lawyer and law professor who filed the case to clean up the Manila Bay, his recent victory in the Supreme Court is a dream come true.
“This 10-year saga started as a dream to see the bay clean again. Now, I will see the fulfillment of this dream,” said Antonio Oposa, a professor at the University of the Philippines College of Law.
Oposa, a longtime resident of Imus, Cavite, one of the provinces bordering the bay, saw firsthand the deterioration of the Manila Bay.
In 1999, he decided to do something about it. That year, he filed a case before the regional trial court in Imus to compel government agencies to clean up the bay.
The case was elevated to the high court. And last Dec. 18, after nine years of legal work, the Supreme Court ordered the government to immediately clean up the bay.
For Oposa, 54, the dream started in the late 1990s when he came across a study that showed that if the bay was properly cared for, “it could feed Metro Manila with enough fish. The bay has recreational value and is a national treasure.”
Outrage
However, stakeholders, including some local officials, “ignored the problem, they couldn’t care less. No one was interested in cleaning up the bay.”
According to the study, there were almost one million units of fecal matter per cubic meter in the waters of Manila Bay, way above the normal level of 20 units. The environmentalist in Oposa was outraged and he decided to take matters into his own hands.
“I am just a lawyer and I tell my story through the law. I thought that this needed to be brought to the attention of the public and the concerned government agencies,” he said.
He brought the issue to his students in environmental law at the UP and they agreed to help and stand as plaintiffs.
Oposa said he wanted to include his students in the suit “so there is representation from the youth. I wanted to make it symbolic.” He also included his then 3-month-old son, Jaime Agustin, in the list of plaintiffs.
Discovery of little-known law
As the years went by, Oposa’s students graduated and he was left to fight the battle alone. Fortunately, he was able to get the help of lawyer Sigfrid Fortun.
Oposa said he discovered a little known 1977 law, Presidential Decree No. 1152, which provided that when bodies of waters are polluted, it is the duty of the government to clean it up.
“Only two people knew of that law: me and former President Marcos,” Oposa said.
He said he met stiff resistance from various government agencies which argued before the high court that the cleanup of Manila Bay was a “political question” and therefore not subject to legal action.
Nonetheless, he thanked his opponents at the Office of the Solicitor General for bringing the matter up to the Supreme Court.
Final, executory
“Their appeal to the Supreme Court has resulted in this decision. Finally, we have a final and executory decision on the matter that is respected by all.”
Fighting wars in behalf of the government is not entirely new to Oposa.
It was Oposa who filed a case in 1980 against the then Environment Secretary Fulgencio Factoran to cancel all logging concessions “in behalf of the children and future generations.” He won that now landmark case before the Supreme Court in 1993.
In 1989, he started a campaign to clean up the rivers of Imus, Cavite, in cooperation with the local government.
“That project was successful. But when the rains came, the waste matter from Dasmariñas came flowing in and we were back where we started,” he said.
A lack of political will
In fairness to local officials, Oposa said he saw many local governments and agencies wanting to do something about Manila Bay. “But they lacked the political will,” he said.
“I know many want to do the right thing. Now, they have the teeth because the rule of law is behind them,” Oposa said.
He said he wants to see a serious implementation of the Supreme Court decision on the Manila Bay cleanup.
On Jan. 7, members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the Philippine Bar Association will meet to discuss measures to monitor the implementation of the cleanup.
One of the initial ideas is to write to the government agencies concerned, asking for a report on the progress of the cleanup, with a copy to be furnished the Supreme Court.
“If government agencies and local governments waver in the cleanup, they will have to be answerable to the high court,” he said.
Wastewater treatment
He also said he agreed with the call of Environment Secretary Lito Atienza for the two major water concessionaires in Metro Manila—Manila Water Co. and Maynilad Water Services Inc.—to immediately set up wastewater treatment facilities as a start in the cleanup of the bay.
Oposa cited another study that showed that four million gallons, or 16 million liters of raw untreated sewage, were being dumped into Manila Bay every day.
“If we look at our water bill, we pay a sewage fee. How come there is no compliance at least for the past 10 years?” he asked.
For Oposa, the fight to save Manila Bay has just begun and he anticipates the day when he would see the bay back to its pristine beauty.
“The Supreme Court decision reminds us that we are responsible for the environment to our youth and future generations,” he said.
When in Cebu City, please visit gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs.
By Alcuin Papa
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 06:28:00 01/02/2009
MANILA, Philippines—For the lawyer and law professor who filed the case to clean up the Manila Bay, his recent victory in the Supreme Court is a dream come true.
“This 10-year saga started as a dream to see the bay clean again. Now, I will see the fulfillment of this dream,” said Antonio Oposa, a professor at the University of the Philippines College of Law.
Oposa, a longtime resident of Imus, Cavite, one of the provinces bordering the bay, saw firsthand the deterioration of the Manila Bay.
In 1999, he decided to do something about it. That year, he filed a case before the regional trial court in Imus to compel government agencies to clean up the bay.
The case was elevated to the high court. And last Dec. 18, after nine years of legal work, the Supreme Court ordered the government to immediately clean up the bay.
For Oposa, 54, the dream started in the late 1990s when he came across a study that showed that if the bay was properly cared for, “it could feed Metro Manila with enough fish. The bay has recreational value and is a national treasure.”
Outrage
However, stakeholders, including some local officials, “ignored the problem, they couldn’t care less. No one was interested in cleaning up the bay.”
According to the study, there were almost one million units of fecal matter per cubic meter in the waters of Manila Bay, way above the normal level of 20 units. The environmentalist in Oposa was outraged and he decided to take matters into his own hands.
“I am just a lawyer and I tell my story through the law. I thought that this needed to be brought to the attention of the public and the concerned government agencies,” he said.
He brought the issue to his students in environmental law at the UP and they agreed to help and stand as plaintiffs.
Oposa said he wanted to include his students in the suit “so there is representation from the youth. I wanted to make it symbolic.” He also included his then 3-month-old son, Jaime Agustin, in the list of plaintiffs.
Discovery of little-known law
As the years went by, Oposa’s students graduated and he was left to fight the battle alone. Fortunately, he was able to get the help of lawyer Sigfrid Fortun.
Oposa said he discovered a little known 1977 law, Presidential Decree No. 1152, which provided that when bodies of waters are polluted, it is the duty of the government to clean it up.
“Only two people knew of that law: me and former President Marcos,” Oposa said.
He said he met stiff resistance from various government agencies which argued before the high court that the cleanup of Manila Bay was a “political question” and therefore not subject to legal action.
Nonetheless, he thanked his opponents at the Office of the Solicitor General for bringing the matter up to the Supreme Court.
Final, executory
“Their appeal to the Supreme Court has resulted in this decision. Finally, we have a final and executory decision on the matter that is respected by all.”
Fighting wars in behalf of the government is not entirely new to Oposa.
It was Oposa who filed a case in 1980 against the then Environment Secretary Fulgencio Factoran to cancel all logging concessions “in behalf of the children and future generations.” He won that now landmark case before the Supreme Court in 1993.
In 1989, he started a campaign to clean up the rivers of Imus, Cavite, in cooperation with the local government.
“That project was successful. But when the rains came, the waste matter from Dasmariñas came flowing in and we were back where we started,” he said.
A lack of political will
In fairness to local officials, Oposa said he saw many local governments and agencies wanting to do something about Manila Bay. “But they lacked the political will,” he said.
“I know many want to do the right thing. Now, they have the teeth because the rule of law is behind them,” Oposa said.
He said he wants to see a serious implementation of the Supreme Court decision on the Manila Bay cleanup.
On Jan. 7, members of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and the Philippine Bar Association will meet to discuss measures to monitor the implementation of the cleanup.
One of the initial ideas is to write to the government agencies concerned, asking for a report on the progress of the cleanup, with a copy to be furnished the Supreme Court.
“If government agencies and local governments waver in the cleanup, they will have to be answerable to the high court,” he said.
Wastewater treatment
He also said he agreed with the call of Environment Secretary Lito Atienza for the two major water concessionaires in Metro Manila—Manila Water Co. and Maynilad Water Services Inc.—to immediately set up wastewater treatment facilities as a start in the cleanup of the bay.
Oposa cited another study that showed that four million gallons, or 16 million liters of raw untreated sewage, were being dumped into Manila Bay every day.
“If we look at our water bill, we pay a sewage fee. How come there is no compliance at least for the past 10 years?” he asked.
For Oposa, the fight to save Manila Bay has just begun and he anticipates the day when he would see the bay back to its pristine beauty.
“The Supreme Court decision reminds us that we are responsible for the environment to our youth and future generations,” he said.
When in Cebu City, please visit gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs.
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