I KNEW my home province had put in place the necessary safeguards to protect Davao Oriental’s environment and natural resources from irresponsible degradation. In recent years, the provincial government has also established a plan called the Foreshore Development and Management Plan of Davao Oriental in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
If my memory serves me correctly, every time I took a trip to Davao Oriental during summer vacation from school, I would recognize that the bus had already arrived in the province when it began to approach a hilly road, and I would always look up the surrounding mountains in awe as it faced the blue ocean along Banaybanay’s barangay Punta Linao. It was back then when the lengthy and winding roads in Punta Linao were still rocky, and large rocks would frequently fall and block the highway, as well as vehicular accidents.
My most recent vacation was this past weekend, when I had to go to Banaybanay to see a colleague.
As I approached Punta Linao road, I noticed that the lush green scenery at the top of the mountain had vanished, but it astounded me to see that roads had been opened uphill and the greens had disappeared completely, which eventually led me to a massive facility at the foot of the same mountain that extended to the bayside of Punta Linao and beyond.
After eroding the boondocks and infiltrating what used to be the blue seas of Punta Linao, the place was completely altered, telling me not just about environmental damage but also about changing the face of humanity in this part of the globe.
Locals informed me that tons of soil had been shipped to China. “Nagmina sila ug gihurot na nila og bungkag ang mga bukid,” some innocent children said. I was speechless and quickly tried to understand who in government had authorized such massive mining operations to demolish the barangays of Pintatagan, Punta Linao, Maputi, Kauswagan, and Mahayag in the municipality of Banaybanay, Davao Oriental.
I was intrigued as to what happened to the implementation of the Davao Oriental Foreshore Development and Management Plan, which was established sometime in 2020. DENR and the provincial government of Davao Oriental supposedly inked a collaboration agreement.
According to DENR Regional Executive Director Evasco, the Foreshore Development Program strives to protect Davao Oriental’s shorelines amid the pandemic and its burgeoning tourism sector. He explained that one of the reasons Davao Oriental was chosen to pilot the plan’s implementation is that it has become a popular weekend getaway for tourists from nearby provinces and cities due to its captivating landscapes fringed with beautiful shorelines and pristine beaches, making it vulnerable to environmental degradation and pollution.
The DENR will oversee environmental protection through existing environmental laws, while the provincial local government unit will oversee management, especially in terms of solid waste management, water quality management, and other environmental concerns for the preservation of the oceans and marine ecosystem, according to RED Evasco.
“We will be able to coordinate strategies based on existing regulations thanks to the plan.” It will also serve as a place for us to better manage our resources. It’s only a matter of putting things in perspective,” he added, adding that local government units will be required to incorporate these rules and standards in their own plans, such as the Comprehensive Land Use Plan, under the terms of the plan.
I hope that whatever the Comprehensive Land Use Plan contains will benefit the community while also protecting Banaybanay’s natural resources in an environmentally sound manner.
