The Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Environmental Management Bureau has launched a data center providing real-time monitoring of air and water quality, including the status of solid and hazardous waste management, facilities with environmental compliance certificates and online permitting system.
Secretary Jim Sampulna said the EMB data center would provide the most intensive services to “give the public quality environmental data that brings together real-time air, water and even solid waste data from across the country that will certainly empower our citizens to make informed health choices and strengthen the DENR’s capability to take immediate action against erring establishments.”
Similar undertakings have been made in other DENR field offices in recent years but were “not as intensive as this one,” he noted.
He lauded the efforts of the DENR-EMB even if the funds for the establishment of the P10-million facility came from the savings of the bureau.
According to Stephen Roie Lee, head of the facility’s IT team, expenses for the facility’s programming and operation would reach almost P100 million if contracted out to a third party.
“This is the kind of leadership and management that I like. You’re given 10 and you accomplished much more than P10,” Sampulna said.
EMB director William Cuñado said they pooled together in-house talents of computer programmers both from its main office and regional offices to come up with an integrated platform for the facility which is housed in a 60-square meter room at the EMB executive building in Quezon City.
The data can be accessed at www.emb.gov.ph
A self-generated show cause order is sent online to the establishment, giving it 24 hours to explain why it should not face proceedings leading to a possible issuance of a notice of violation.