Depending on which side you are looking at on this issue, definitely the forfeiture of the Coron Reclamation Project by the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) is a significant turn which is rather unexpected. A total of 22 hectares or reclaimed land is at stake, a project which was undertaken by the Palawan provincial government and its joint ventures.
For the people who are working towards the protection of the environment led by Bob Magallanes, a Coron native and one of the conveners of Sagip Coron Palawan (SCP), it is a triumph after years of what they term as “fighting the good fight”.
For the part of the provincial government who are working towards the development of the area with its joint venture partners, it looks like a lost opportunity as the area would have been potentially developed into a place for tourism such as construction of hotels, docking stations among others.
The official declaration came in the form of Resolution No. 5541-2022 issued last June 16 released by Atty. Mark Arthur Catabona who is the acting board secretary of the PRA which cite the project as an unuathorized reclamation as it has no area clearance from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
PRA General Manager and CEO Janilo Rubiato said the total forfeiture is the first case granted in favor of the national government as other forfeitures have only partial coverage that still allowed proponents to use certain parts of the reclaimed area.
Marion Raagas on the other hand which is one of the Sagip Coron’s conveners, claimed the decision as a “big victory for Mother Nature and the Coron people.
Mr. Raagas in a statement in the Inquirer stated, “We are also hoping that the incoming administration will be supportive of our efforts, hopes and dreams for ordinary people who are affected by illegal reclamation and quarrying that they may review the ‘Executive Order Coron,’which SCP’s legal counsel drafted, so we can execute the whole-of-nation approach and the much needed reforms for both our country’s development and responsible reclamation and quarrying will be followed and endorsed to the letter.”
The Coron Bay Development Project was started in 2007 by the then Gov. Joel T. Reyes which started in a 3 hectare development and extended into 48 hectares which was applied for the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
We like Coron as an unspoiled Paradise with sustainable development. But with this development, it is now up to the different governmental institutions as well as their private counterparts to come up with a comprehensive master plan for the rehabilitation of the reclaimed area as well as Coron Municipality as a whole.
Credits to the photo by Randolph Aborot of Sagip Coron Palawan
