The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued an administrative order creating Metropolitan Environmental Offices (MEOs) in the National Capital Region (NCR) to strengthen the enforcement of environmental laws and solid waste management programs for the rehabilitation of Manila Bay.
Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu said DENR field offices in Metro Manila will be transitioning to MEOs and will be tasked to strictly implement the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 and comply with the Writ of Continuing Mandamus for Manila Bay issued by the Supreme Court in 2008.
“We have to strengthen our field offices to capacitate the local government units and to meet our audacious goals. Also, to take on more challenges that will be on our way this 2022,” said Cimatu, in a statement.
“We hope the public would feel the presence of the DENR even in their respective barangays or residences so that they will be reminded of their responsibilities in the proper disposal of their wastes for the greater good of their communities,” Cimatu added.
The DENR also noted that MEOs will serve as the agency’s “overseer” in the different areas of the metropolis on a micro level. The MEOs will be supervised by an undersecretary, assistant secretary and director.
MEOs will also serve as frontline units for the enforcement of environmental laws, rules and regulations in NCR and will intensify coordination efforts with partner government agencies and non-government organizations in cleaning up the rivers and other water bodies.
MEOs will also provide technical assistance to the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, and local government units (LGUs) in monitoring the quality of water bodies and proper disposal of solid waste in their respective areas of jurisdiction.
The offices are also mandated to coordinate with the Department of Health, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System and water concessionaires and LGUs to facilitate the completion of a sewerage system and achieve international standards of sanitation in the entire region.
In 2019, the DENR also created four field offices in Metro Manila to strengthen the enforcement of environmental laws in the country’s most densely populated regions and make government services more accessible to the people, particularly those in the NCR.
