A PANEL in the House of Representatives has approved a measure that seeks to authorize the Department of Public Works and Highways to cut, ball, transfer, dispose or plant trees when implementing national or local infrastructure projects such as, but not limited to, clearing of road right-of-way and site clearing, development or preparation.
The House committee on natural resources approved House Bill 4208, authored by Rep. Bayani Fernando of 1st District, Marikina City, which grants the DPWH exemption from securing tree cutting, earth-balling, transfer, disposal and planting permits from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and its agencies.
The agencies include the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office, the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office, Forest Management Bureau and the local government unit concerned.
Rep. Arnel Ty of LPGMA Party-list, the panel chairperson, said the bill was supported by Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.
Ty said Alvarez gave them directives to call on the DENR and the DPWH to have some executive arrangement between the two government agencies to not wait for the approval of the bill and to start the balling out of trees which are obstructing roads and causing accidents.
Ty said the Department of Energy and the DENR already signed a memorandum of agreement in removing electrical posts that are hazardous to motorists.
Fernando, meanwhile, said he filed the bill to put the authority on roadways with the road engineers.
Fernando said the main consideration in the design of the roadways was safety for the motorists and the public as well as fast travel speed.
“This is the sole province of the road design engineer who has the knowledge and the responsibility in ensuring that this primary design feature is followed. And in no way a forester or a DENR guy would know the requirements of the highway,” he said.
Fernando said securing tree-cutting/earth-balling/transfer/disposal/planting permits from the DENR only delays the implementation of DPWH projects.
Fernando also requested the DPWH to buy five balling machine for each region, or 60 in all.
He said the LGUs were very much aware of the environment. “It is the local governments actually that are planting the trees and they would not tolerate the indiscriminate cutting of trees.”
