ENVIRONMENT advocates yesterday asked the Supreme Court (SC) to issue a writ of kalikasan to stop the construction of the China-funded P23.52 billion Samal Island – Davao City interconnector project, saying that it is wrongly designed and misaligned and will allegedly destroy coastal and marine resources and biodiversity in Samal.
A writ of kalikasan is a legal remedy that provides for the protection of one’s right to “a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature,” as provided for in Section 16, Article II of the 1987 Constitution.
The petitioners are Carmela Marie Santos of Ecoteneo, Mark Peñalver of IDIS Incorporated, and the Sustainable Davao Movement. They are represented by lawyers from the La Viña Zarate law offices and Ateneo de Davao University College of Law Dean Manny Quibod.
The petitioners said there is a need for the writ of kalikasan to stop further works on the 3.98-kilometer government-backed project that they said violates their constitutional right to a balanced and healthful ecology.
Named as respondents were Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga, the Protected Area Management Board of Samal Island, and Chinese contractor China Road and Bridge Corporation.
Santos expressed hope that the SC will “stop an immensely harmful development project,” which she said will have enormous consequences for the marine environment and biodiversity of the area.
She also said the construction activities in connection with the project are damaging to two critical coral ecosystems, namely, the Paradise Reef in Samal Island and the Hizon Marine Protected Area in Davao City.
According to the 212-page petition, the 15,000-square meter Paradise Reef contained 70 percent hard rock corals and is considered as among the last pristine reefs in the Davao Gulf, while the Hizon Marine Protected Area has shown a 30 percent consistent hike in fish catch by local fishermen since 2018 due to the coral cover and growth.
The petitioners said the ongoing offshore borehole drilling, port and craneway building, and soil testing for the project are adversely affecting the two coral ecosystems.
Citing studies by marine experts, they said siltation and sedimentation due to the construction activities have already damaged around 600 meters of the coral reefs in Paradise Reef, in violation of existing laws such as the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act, the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, and Davao City’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan.
“We hope that a writ of kalikasan be issued against the Samal Island bridge project supported by China and implemented by the national government. Because that bridge being constructed, is destroying coastal and marine biodiversity and resources in Samal Island and in the Davao Gulf.
