Water issues

While we were in a media briefing trip on a private sector-led water treatment and distribution project in Panglao island resort in Bohol last week, we learned about the presence there also of top-level government inspection team. It was the inter-agency task force created earlier this year by President Rodrigo Duterte to protect and preserve all the country’s major tourist destinations such as the Panglao island resort.

After completing their maiden mission in Boracay island in Aklan, the inter-agency task force swopped down last week in Panglao and then to El Nido in Palawan one after the other. The task force is composed of Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Roy Cimatu, and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año.

Making their “surprise” inspection trips in Panglao and El Nido, the task force threatens to take drastic actions, including closure of specific non-compliant establishments. The task force found out to their dismay that the beach waters of both island resorts were positive for “very high” level of coliform.

A Google search defined coliform as a broad class of bacteria found in our environment, including the feces of man and other warm-blooded animals. The presence of coliform bacteria in drinking water may indicate a possible presence of harmful, disease-causing organisms if ingested by a human or upon contact with skin.

Why the task force stopped short though of “a la Boracay” closure of the entire island resorts in Panglao and El Nido? What gives? 

The creation of the inter-agency task force was the offshoot of President Duterte’s decision to close down Boracay. More popularly known for its white sand beaches and clear blue crystal waters, the President deplored what Boracay had become into what he called a “cesspool” from years of environmental degradation.

With the full backing of President Duterte, the task force went hard after establishments operating in Boracay that have flagrantly violated through these years the required 30-meter easement from the shoreline, illegal water, septic and sewage connections, and non-compliance of other national and local environmental laws. The Chief Executive closed down Boracay starting April for more than six months.

During that period, foreign and local tourists were kept from going there while the task force implemented drastic rehabilitation and strict enforcement of national and local environmental laws. To date, around 200 establishments—after getting the task force approval of their being compliant with environmental and other national and local laws—are now back in business following the reopening of Boracay to all tourists.           

Fresh from their maiden mission in the Boracay rehabilitation, the task force flew to Panglao last November 26-27.Their trip there coincided with President Duterte’s inauguration of the newly completed Panglao International Airport that will usher in a greater number of foreign and local tourists going to their world famous diving spots, white sand beaches, and Bohol’s pride—the Chocolate Hills and tarsiers.

In a radio interview, Romulo-Puyat bared the coliform count at Alona Beach in Panglao and Buena Suerte Beach in El Nido was 16,000 most probable number (mpn) and 1,300 mpn, respectively.  The coliform level found is much higher than the normal water quality of 100 mpn. According to her, the task force already informed the respective local government officials to ban swimming in specific beaches in both Panglao and El Nido where dangerous coliform levels were found.

As agreed during their meeting with the local government officials in Panglao last Tuesday, the task force agreed to a “no total closure for tourist attractions” except for those tourism-oriented establishments that are non-compliant with environmental laws. As done to Boracay, the task force will oversee the rehabilitation works in both Panglao and El Nido at the same time.

At El Nido, Puyat disclosed, they were informed by the local government officials about the closure orders issued already to more than 22 establishments found violating specific national and local environmental laws. But Panglao local government officials proved to be more challenging to the task force because they themselves are owners of some 87 of these establishments.

We had telephone conversations with Romulo-Puyat while we were both in Panglao last week but most of them were off-the-record. Suffice it to say, the political will demonstrated by President Duterte in the closure of Boracay is being tested.

Even with all that natural beauty, Bohol is not without problems. One of its most pressing concerns is the lack of a clean, safe, and stable supply of water. For years, the Boholanos’ water came from deep wells. The lack of water has also hampered further development of Panglao Island.

Clean potable drinking water will start flowing to the households through the newly installed underground pipe connections. This is a welcome relief for many Boholanos who for years have suffered from recurring cholera, gastro-intestinal problems, and kidney stones due to the ingestion of unsafe water due to poor water treatment facility.

Richli Corporation, a private company owned by Bohol-native Richard E. Lim, addressed this problem by building a state-of-the-art water treatment facility in Barangay Patrocinio, Cortes, 32 kilometers northwest of Panglao. They are tapping surface water source from the Malingin River and distribute potable bulk water to other towns that included Bohol’s capital city of Tagbilaran.

The P1.5-billion project has an initial output of 10,000 cubic meters of water per day and is expected to reach a peak target of 25,000 cubic meters per day. This is good enough to supply potable water to 10,000 to 15,000 households. The project will be inaugurated to full operations later this month.

President Duterte no less declared every Filipino family must have access to safe drinking water for them to lead productive lives. So water issues are his priorities.