SC sets oral argument on Boracay reclamation

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) has set for oral argument a petition seeking to stop a P1-billion reclamation project covering the 40-hectare coastline of world-renowned Boracay Island and nearby Caticlan port in Aklan.

In their full-court session yesterday, the SC justices led by Chief Justice Renato Corona agreed to hold oral argument on the petition of Boracay Foundation Inc. (BFI) on Sept. 13.

The oral argument was ordered “to enable the parties to the case to amplify their positions on the issue presented before the court,” SC spokesman Midas Marquez said.

The SC earlier issued a temporary environmental protection order (TEPO) enjoining the provincial capitol and other implementing agencies – represented by Gov. Carlito Marquez, the Philippine Reclamation Authority, and the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – from proceeding with the project.

The SC saw the need to issue the TEPO – a version of the temporary restraining order for environmental cases – after finding the BPI’s grounds meritorious.

Marquez said the TEPO stands until further order from the court.

The BFI, composed of over 60 resort, hotel, and restaurant owners as well as community organizations and environmental advocates, questioned the implementation of the project, which started in December last year, due to purported lack of a comprehensive environmental impact assessment and public hearings.