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Town execs asked not to give hog farms permits

January 8, 2011

ANGELES CITY — A group of environmentalists discouraged officials of a neighboring town from issuing business permits to piggery and poultry operators there.
Ruperto Cruz, president of the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM), said Porac town officials should not issue business permits to hog farms there, which have been the subjects of complaints for the foul smell they emit.
“No permits, no licenses should be issued. Local officials should consider the welfare of their constituents by not allowing these hog farms that emanate foul smell to operate. They should seize their operations until they are properly inspected. That would give the public relief,” he said.
Cruz said they will file a class suit against local officials should they issue business permits to piggery operators. He said they will invoke the Writ of Kalikasan.
The Writ of Kalikasan is a new mandate that the Supreme Court defined as a “remedy available to a natural or juridical person, entity authorized by law, people’s organization, non-governmental organization, or any public interest group accredited by or registered with any government agency, on behalf of persons whose constitutional rights to a balanced and healthful ecology is violated, or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or private individual or entity, involving environmental damage of such magnitude as to prejudice the life, health or property of inhabitants in two or more cities or provinces.”
For more than 10 years now, PGKM and other environmentalist groups from Angeles City and Porac have complained and protested against 14 piggeries in Barangay Sinura, Sta. Cruz and Manibaug Paralaya.
The issue of the foul stench emanating from these 14 big hog farms in Porac has been raised 20 years ago by these environmentalists.
Distressed residents blamed the deaths of their colleagues on the foul smell.
On October 2010, Councilor Michael Tapang suggested the formation of a task force to address the issue.
The task force was headed by Mayor Condralito dela Cruz, with other members as representatives from the local health office, piggery operators, environment agency and distressed residents.
Expected to conduct daily monitoring, the task force was able to inspect several hog farms in Porac for only two days.
During the third monitoring day, Cruz said representatives from the local government unit did not show up.
“The purpose of the meeting was to cut down the members of the task force from 12 to four, with only one representative from us,” Cruz said.
He, however, added that such suggestion was a clear violation of the policy of transparency and accountability within the task force.
“That is an invitation to corruption of the monitoring results as well as of the monitors themselves,” he said.
Cruz reiterated that their group is not against the hog farms per se. He said they only want the hog farms to comply with sanitation standards.
Sun.Star Pampanga is still trying to reach Mayor Dela Cruz for comments. (Charlene Cayabyab)

Source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/pampanga/local-news/town-execs-asked-not-give-hog-farms-permits

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