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THE Pollution Adjudication Board of the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) has issued a cease and desist order
against a hog raising company in Camiling, Tarlac, and imposed fines
on two other establishments in Cavite for violation of the Clean
Water Act, or R.A. 9275.
It was on January 24 that Environment Secretary
Lito Atienza signed the order against Charity Farm, a hog-raising
firm located at Barangay Malacampa in Camiling for repeatedly
failures to implement pollution safety measures since February 2006.
“We have to be firm in our stand of making
industries comply with the environmental standards, in these cases,
the effluent standards. Our waterways must be kept clean and free of
pollution and other contaminants,” Atienza said.
The adjudication board said Charity Farm
exceeded the DENR standards on water effluents and despite several
warnings, failed to act on it. The farm also violated Presidential
Decree 1586, which requires piggeries to have an environmental
compliance certificate.
At the same time, the DENR imposed fines against
Asia Paper Industrial Corp., a paper manufacturing firm located in
Trece Martirez City, Cavite, and Annie Sweet Candy Manufacturing
Corp. in Imus of same province. The firms exceeded effluent
standards.
The adjudication board imposed a fine of
P240,000 against Asia Paper for “violations previously committed
against the provisions of Republic Act 9275, or the Clean Water Act
of 2004.”
Annie Sweet Candy was imposed a fine of P100,000
covering the actual days of discharging wastewater from June 30 to
September 1, 2006.
The DENR chief said that they gave Charity Farm
sufficient time to correct its environmental deficiencies through a
series of consultations with its regional office.
The two other companies were also given the same
due process before penalties were imposed on them.
-- Ira Karen Apanay
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