A House leader on Friday urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to check other tourist destinations where business establishments may have been violating environmental laws similar to what happened in Boracay.
“I am sure this is not just happening in Boracay, but this may also be the case in other tourist destinations,” Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said.
“The cleanup should start now for the sake of our people living in those areas,” Barbers added.
Barbers made the statement after DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu announced last Tuesday that 51 establishments were served notices for closure for violating the Clean Water Act of 2004 after these were found to have no wastewater treatment facilities and dumping sewage into the sea.
This after President Rodrigo Duterte blamed local officials for allowing the structures to be built overlapping the coastline of Boracay without a sewerage system.
Under the law, establishments and households are mandated to dispose of their septic waste through a treatment facility.
Cimatu said that while 50 to 60 percent of all establishments in Boracay appeared to be compliant with the requirement, “all the rest direct their pipes to the canals, which drain to the sea.”
Barbers said local officials must see to it that all business establishments in their areas will not cause environmental problems.
Data from the Aklan Provincial Tourism Office showed that from January to October 2017 alone, Boracay island was visited by 1.669 million tourists and generated P46.526 billion in tourism receipts.
Foreigners and Filipinos who live abroad accounted for P31.769 billion of the tourism-related revenue, while domestic tourists spent P14.757 billion.
“These business establishments are earning big bucks for their operations. In return, they should give back to the people by not endangering their safety and health,” Barbers said.